Bombay High Court
Anurag Laxminarayan Shivhare vs The State Of Mah., Thr. P.S.O. P.S. ... on 5 January, 2021
Bench: S.B. Shukre, Pushpa V. Ganediwala
APL 923.2019 1
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
NAGPUR BENCH, NAGPUR.
CRIMINAL APPLICATION (APL) NO. 923 OF 2019
Anurag s/o Laxminarayan Shivhare,
aged about 43 years, Occ. Business,
R/o Venus Plaza, Shegaon Naka, Amravati.
...APPLICANT
Versus
1. The State of Maharashtra,
through Police Station Officer,
Police Station, Nandgaon - Peth,
District Amravati.
2. Smt. Archana wd/o Gajanan Gedam,
aged about 40 years,
R/o Laxminagar, Near Gadge Nagar,
Amravati.
...RESPONDENTS.
Shri R.M. Daga, Advocate for the applicant.
Shri S.A. Ashirgade, A.P.P. for respondent No.1.
None for respondent No.2.
.....
CORAM : SUNIL B. SHUKRE AND
PUSHPA V. GANEDIWALA, JJ.
DATE OF RESERVE : NOVEMBER 11, 2020.
DATE OF PRONOUNCEMENT : JANUARY 05, 2021.
JUDGMENT : (PER : PUSHPA V. GANEDIWALA, J.)
Rule. Rule is made returnable forthwith. Heard
finally by consent of learned counsel appearing for the parties.
2. This is an application filed under Section 482 of the
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, seeking quashment of the
First Information Report No.167/2019 dated 03/06/2019
registered at Police Station Nandgaon Peth, District - Amravati
for the offence punishable under Section 306 of the Indian
Penal Code, 1860 (for short "IPC").
3. It is the case of the prosecution that on 03/06/2019,
the informant Archana - wife of the deceased Gajanan, lodged a
report with the respondent No.1 stating therein that on
03/06/2019, at around 5.00 pm, the present applicant informed
her on her mobile that her husband had consumed mosquito
insecticide, and he was admitted to Panjabrao Deshmukh
Hospital. That when she was going to the said Hospital, she
again received a phone call and was asked to come to the Irwin
Hospital. That at around 5.30 pm, when she reached to the
Irwin Hospital, she found her husband died of poisoning. It is
further stated that the deceased was working in a Hotel, and
used to come to the house in every 8-10 days and used to made
a call to her in every 2-3 days. That on 23/05/2019, the
deceased had been to the house. At that time, he informed the
complainant that he has to work till late night and therefore, he
does not wish to go there again. It is further stated that
thereafter, the deceased called her from the mobile of another
person informing her that his mobile was kept by the present
applicant. It is her contention that the deceased, being fed-up
with the harassment by the applicant, committed suicide.
4. Shri Daga, learned counsel for the applicant,
submitted that a bare perusal of the FIR does not make out a
case of abetment to commit suicide.
5. Shri Ashirgade, learned A.P.P., strongly opposed the
application through the reply affidavit filed on record.
6. We have considered the submissions put forth on
behalf of both the sides and perused the record.
7. At the outset, the reply, filed on behalf of the State,
does not reflect any other material against the present applicant
except what is stated in the FIR. We have perused the statement
of the witnesses, specially, the waiters, who were working in the
Gauri Hotel at Nandgaon Peth, Amravati, at the relevant time.
However, they did not say anything which supports the case of
suicide at the instigation of the present applicant.
8. Furthermore, though the FIR came to be registered
on 03/06/2019, till date, the prosecution could not file
chargesheet before the Court below, which indicates absence of
material against the present applicant to make out an offence
punishable under Section 306 of IPC. On a query being put to
the learned A.P.P. as to whether any part of investigation is
remained to be done, he answered in negative.
9. The law by now stands well settled on the offence
punishable under Section 306 of IPC. The co-ordinate Bench of
this Court in the case of Dilip s/o Ramrao Shirasao & Ors. Vs.
State of Maharashtra & Anr., reported in 2016 ALL MR (Cri)
4328, relying on a catena of judgments of the Hon'ble Supreme
Court, in para No.20 has observed as under :
"20. XXXX it is necessary for the prosecution to at
least prima facie establish that the accused had an
intention to aid or instigate or abet the deceased to
commit suicide. In the absence of availability of
such material, the accused cannot be compelled to
face trial for the offence punishable under Section
306 of the Indian Penal Code. XXXX Unless there is
clear mens rea to commit an offence or active act or
direct act, which led the deceased to commit suicide
seeing no option or the act intending to push the
deceased into such a position, the trial against the
accused under Section 306 of the Indian Penal
Code, in our considered view, would be an abuse of
process of law."
10. Coming to the facts of the present case, we could
not notice from the case diary the kind of abetment as is
contemplated under Section 107 of IPC to the deceased at the
hands of the present applicant. General allegations of
harassment, without any specific details, cannot be understood
by no stretch of imagination that the applicant abetted the
suicide of the deceased as contemplated under Section 107 of
the IPC. Insufficient and vague allegations of harassment, in
absence of further detailing, cannot lead to the prosecution for
the offence punishable under Section 306 of the IPC.
11. In such circumstances, we are of the firm view that
the application needs to be allowed and it is accordingly
allowed. First Information Report No.167/2019 dated
03/06/2019 registered at Police Station Nandgaon Peth, District
- Amravati for the offence punishable under Section 306 of the
IPC is quashed and set aside.
12. Rule is made absolute in the aforesaid terms.
JUDGE JUDGE
******
Sumit
