CRM-M-40443-2022 (O&M) -1-
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT
CHANDIGARH
(204)
CRM-M-40443-2022 (O&M)
Date of decision: - 09.09.2022
Sarabjeet Kaur
....Petitioner
Versus
The State of Punjab
.....Respondent
CORAM : HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE VIKAS BAHL
Present:- Mr. Gaurav Datta, Advocate,
for the petitioner.
Mr. Ramadeep Partap Singh, AAG, Punjab.
****
VIKAS BAHL, J. (ORAL)
CRM-32876-2022 This is an application filed for grant of leave under Rule 3/A(1) of Chapter VI, Part B, Volume V of Punjab and Haryana High Court Rules and Orders to file the present petition.
In view of averments made in the application, the same is allowed and leave is granted under the aforesaid Rules and Orders to file the present petition.
CRM-M-40443-2022 This is a first petition under Section 439 Cr.P.C. for grant of regular bail to the petitioner in FIR No.186 dated 25.08.2021 registered under Section 306 IPC at Police Station City Rajpura, District Patiala.
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Learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that the petitioner is a 30 year old lady and has been in custody since 11.04.2022 and the challan in the present case has already been presented and there are 20 prosecution witnesses and none of them have been examined, thus, the trial is likely to take time and the petitioner is not involved in any other case. It is further submitted that the question as to whether in the present case offence under Section 306 IPC is made out or not, would be a matter of debate. It is further stated that Balkar Singh, who has also been made accused in the present case, had applied for anticipatory bail and this Court, vide order dated 05.05.2022, passed in CRM-M-9355- 2022 was pleased to grant the concession of anticipatory bail to said Balkar Singh. Reliance has been placed upon a judgment of this Court titled as "State of Punjab Vs. Kamaljit Kaur alias Bholi and another", reported as 2008 (2) R.C.R. (Criminal) 562, to contend that in a situation as the present case, offence under Section 306 of IPC cannot be said to be made out. Further reliance has also been placed on the judgment of a coordinate Bench of this Court dated 06.02.2012 passed in CRA-S-1802- SB-2002, titled as "Maya Vs. State of Punjab".
Learned State counsel, on the other hand, has opposed the present petition for regular bail and has submitted that it was the present petitioner with whom, the deceased was alleged to have an affair and it is on account of her family restraints, that the deceased committed suicide.
This Court has heard learned counsel for the parties and has perused the paper book.
A co-ordinate Bench of this Court in Kamaljit Kaur's case 2 of 7 ::: Downloaded on - 14-09-2022 02:25:11 ::: CRM-M-40443-2022 (O&M) -3-
(supra) had observed as under:-
"1. The present revision petition is directed by the State against the discharge of Kamaljit Kaur alias Bholi and Surinder Kumar alias Kala, accused. They were facing trial in case FIR No. 108 dated 31-12-1994 registered at Police Station Nawanshahr under Section 306, IPC. It is stated that Paramjit Singh son of Darshan Singh Hira and his son Amritpal alias Lovely committed suicide and left a suicide note to the effect that his wife Kamaljit Kaur alias Bholi is a woman of bad character. He is fed up with her. Therefore, he along with his son Lovely Amritpal Singh is committing suicide. It is further stated that his wife has illicit relations with three persons namely, Palli of Commando Force, Ludhiana, Kala residing opposite to their house and Ujjal Singh, her real uncle. In the suicide note, he has expressed that in these black days, such bad women are living in the Society. It is further stated that his wife Bholi is a lady of loose character. It is further stated that since Palli has come as a tenant in the house, Bholi has become lady of loose character. It is further stated that Kala had noticed Bholi in objectionable manner with Kala. He wanted in suicide note that if law contemplates action against wedded woman, the law should take its course.
2. On 27.8.1994 at 3.00 p.m. dead bodies of young unknown person aged about 30 years and a child aged about 5- 6 years were found near the maize field. These dead bodies were of Paramjit Singh and his son Amritpal alias Lovely. Postmortem was conducted Visceras were sent to the Chemical Examiner. The Chemical Examiner found the cause of death to be Aluminum Phosphide. Suicide note was found from the pocket of Paramjit Singh. After completion of investigation, challan was submitted against Kamaljit Kaur alias Bholi and Surinder Kumar alias Kala. The name of Ujjal Singh was placed in column No. 2. Learned Sessions Judge, Jalandhar, while discharging the respondents had observed as under:-
"It cannot be disputed that charge can be framed merely on strong suspicion and the evidence at the time of framing charge is not to be considered meticulously. But 3 of 7 ::: Downloaded on - 14-09-2022 02:25:11 ::: CRM-M-40443-2022 (O&M) -4-
I am of the considered opinion that the circumstances of the case are such as, possibly, it cannot be stated that a prima facie case is made out against the accused within the meaning of Section 306 of the Code. Abetment of suicide is punishable Under Section 306 of the Code. Section 107 of the Code defines abetment as under:
107. A person abets the doing of a thing, who first, instigates any person to do that thing; or Secondly, engages with one or more other person or persons in any conspiracy for the doing of that thing, if an act or illegal omission takes place in pursuance of that conspiracy, and in order to the doing of that thing; or Thirdly, intentionally incite, by any act or illegal omission, the doing of that thing.
Explanation I. A person who, by wilful misrepresentation, or by wilful concealment of a material fact which he is bound to disclose, voluntary causes or procures or attempts to cause or procure, a thing to be done, is said to instigate the doing of that thing.
XXX---XXX---XXX For arguments sake, if it may be taken that the wife is a woman of easy virtue, even then, it cannot be stated if she had instigated or had aided the commission of suicide. The learned P.P. for the State has not been able to satisfy as to in which manner the commission of suicide has been instigated or aided by the accused. The husband might be feeling harassed or mentally disturbed with the alleged illicit relations of his wife but harassment and the mental disturbance do not constitute the offence of abetment. It looks that the deceased husband was unable to control his wife and he out of frustration has not only committed suicide but has also snuffed the life of his son. The authority Charabhushan Bhimraj Bhushanwar and Ors. (supra) is hardly of any help to the prosecution, I am of the firm view that from the facts of the case no prima facie case is made out against the accused. Though no direct authority is available pertaining to such like facts yet with advantage reference can be made to Shri Ram v. the State of U.P. , Balbir Singh v. The 4 of 7 ::: Downloaded on - 14-09-2022 02:25:11 ::: CRM-M-40443-2022 (O&M) -5-
State of Punjab 1987 (1) Crimes 76; Wazir Chand v. The State of Haryana 1989 (1) Crimes 173 : 1989 CriLJ 809; State of Haryana v. Babu Ram 1992 (1) Criminal Courts judgments 68 and Deepak v. State of M.P. 1984 Cri LJ 767".
3. I have perused the order passed by learned Sessions Judge Jalandhar. In Sanju alias Sanjay Singh Sengar v. State of Madhya Pradesh 2002 (Supp) 1 JT 248, it was held that the word 'instigate' denotes incitement or urging to do some drastic or unadvisable action or to stimulate or incite. Presence of mens rea, therefore, is the necessary concomitant of instigation.
4. The conduct of wife of the deceased though may be conduct of bad wife but was not for the purpose to incite the deceased to commit suicide.
It was held by a Division Bench of this Court in Raj Kumar v. State of Punjab 1983 (1) CLR 660 as under:
"12. Expression 'instigate' in the Concise Oxford Dictionary is defined as 'urge on incite, bring about by persuasion and in Webster, it has been defined as 'urge forward, provoke with synonyms of stimulate, urge, spur, provide tempt, incite, impel, encourage, animate. The word 'instigate' in common parlance would mean to go, to urge forward or to provoke incite or encourage to do an act."
5. Every husband or wife may not be living a life of virtue. The conduct of any spouse, if is not upto the expectations of other spouse, and result into commission of suicide by another abetment of suicide cannot be imputed to the other spouse."
A perusal of the above judgment would show that the said case was also a case under Section 306 of IPC in which two persons i.e., husband of the accused therein and their son had committed suicide and there was a suicide note to the effect that Kamaljit Kaur, wife of the deceased Darshan Singh was a lady of bad character and had illicit relations with three persons and she was caught in an objectionable manner with one of the said three persons and in the suicide note, it was 5 of 7 ::: Downloaded on - 14-09-2022 02:25:11 ::: CRM-M-40443-2022 (O&M) -6-
specifically stated that action should be taken against such a woman. Challan was filed against the said lady as well as her paramour. After considering the provisions of Sections 306 and 107 of IPC, it was observed by the Sessions Court as well as by this Court that even in a case where the wife is alleged of being a woman of easy virtue, then also, it cannot be said that she has instigated or aided the commission of suicide and had observed that in case the husband was feeling harassed or mentally disturbed due to the alleged illicit relationship of his wife, then the harassment and mental disturbance would not constitute the offence of abetment. It was further observed that the word 'instigate' denotes incitement or urging to do some drastic or unadvisable action and the presence of mens rea is a necessary concomitant of instigation. A person may be a bad wife but her conduct was not for the purpose to incite the deceased to commit suicide and, thus, abetment of suicide in such a case cannot be inferred and, thus, the wife in the above-said case was discharged. To the similar effect is the judgment dated 06.12.2012 passed by a coordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Maya Vs. State of Punjab (supra), in which the wife and the paramour, both being tried and convicted thereupon, were ultimately acquitted.
In the present case, the petitioner is a 30 year old lady, who is not involved in any other case and has been in custody since 11.04.2022 and the challan in the present case has already been presented and there are 20 prosecution witnesses and none of them have been examined, thus, the trial is likely to take time. The co-accused of the petitioner Balkar Singh has already been granted the concession of anticipatory bail by this 6 of 7 ::: Downloaded on - 14-09-2022 02:25:11 ::: CRM-M-40443-2022 (O&M) -7-
Court vide order dated 05.05.2022 passed in CRM-M-9355-2022. The question whether offence under Section 306 IPC would be attracted on the basis of the allegations, as have been stated in the FIR or not, would be a matter of debate would be considered during the course of trial.
Keeping in view the above said facts and circumstances and also in view of the law laid down in the above said judgments, the present petition is allowed and the petitioner is ordered to be released on bail on her furnishing bail / surety bonds to the satisfaction of the concerned trial Court/ Duty Magistrate and subject to her not being required in any other case.
Nothing stated above shall be construed as a final expression of opinion on the merits of the case and the trial would proceed independently of the observations made in the present case which are only for the purpose of adjudicating the present bail petition.
( VIKAS BAHL )
September 09, 2022 JUDGE
naresh.k
Whether reasoned/speaking? Yes/No
Whether reportable? Yes/No
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