Bombay High Court
Babu Maroti Wanole And Others vs The State Of Maharashtra And Another on 10 January, 2025
Author: Vibha Kankanwadi
Bench: Vibha Kankanwadi
2025:BHC-AUG:1764-DB
(1)
Cri. Appln. No. 2943-2023.odt
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
BENCH AT AURANGABAD
CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 2943 OF 2023
1. Babu Maroti Wanole,
Age : 33 years, Occ. Agriculture,
R/o. Lohgaon Tq. Biloli,
District Nanded.
2. Saybu S/o Laxman Metkar,
Age : 53 Years, Occ. Agricutlure
3. Shantabai W/o Saybu Metkar,
Age : 72 Years, Occ. Household,
4. Shivaji Saybu Metkar,
Age : 34 Years, Occ. Agriculture
5. Sanjay Saybu Metkar,
Age : 30 Years, Occ. Agriculture
6. Ashok Saybu Metkar,
Age : 23 Years, Occ. Agriculture
7. Maroti Saybu Metkar,
Age : 28 Years, Occ. Agriculture
All resident of Narsi Taluka Naigaon,
District Nanded. .Applicants
VERSUS
1. The State of Maharashtra,
Through Police Station Ramthirth
Taluka Biloli, District Nanded.
2. Mohan Madhavrao Wanole,
Age : 45 Years, Occ. Agriculture,
R/o. Lohgaon Tq. Biloli,
District Nanded. .. Respondents
....
Advocate for the applicants : Mr. S. Y. Mahajan holding for
Mr. V. V. Bhavthankar
A.P.P. for Respondent No.1/State : Mr. A. R. Kale
(2)
Cri. Appln. No. 2943-2023.odt
Advocate for Respondent No.2 : Mr. A.S. Jagtap h/f
Mr. N. S. Kadam
.....
CORAM : SMT. VIBHA KANKANWADI AND
ROHIT W. JOSHI, JJ
DATED : JANUARY 10, 2025
JUDGMENT (PER ROHIT W. JOSHI, J):
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1. Respondent No.2 in the present matter has lodged First
Information Report No. 0083 of 2023 on 28.05.2023 with Police
Station, Ramthirth Taluka Biloli, District Nanded against the present
applicants for the offences punishable under Sections 306, 504, 506
read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code. The First Information
Report pertains to suicidal death of deceased Datta Wanole in the
night intervening 27.05.2023 and 28.05.2023. Respondent No.2 is
brother of the deceased. Respondent No.2 has stated that he and his
deceased brother were owners of 11 Acres agricultural land. Five and
half acres each came to their share in partition. Similarly, his cousin
Maroti Baba Wanole, father of applicant No.1 had received 11 Acres of
land in the partition. Maroti Baba Wanole had sold some portion of
his land to applicant No.2 Saybu Metkar, likewise deceased Datta had
also sold 69 Gunthas land out of his five and half acres land to one
Bhaskar Patil Jiglekar around seven to eight days before lodging of the
First Information Report. He states that there was boundary dispute
in between the deceased and applicant Nos. 1 and 2 in relation to
which complaints were lodged with respondent No.1 police station. It
Cri. Appln. No. 2943-2023.odt
is stated in the First Information Report that on 27.05.2023 at about
12 noon when respondent No.2 and his deceased brother were
ploughing their field to prepare the same for sowing operation, the
accused persons entered their agricultural land and asked the
deceased to refrain from ploughing the land, stating that the said
portion did not belong to him. It is stated that they had started
abusing deceased Datta. Respondent No.2 states that he has
intervened in the matter and suggested that accused should get their
land measured. At that time applicant Nos. 1 and 2 rushed towards
the deceased and asked him to leave the land, failing which they had
threatened that they would kill him. Respondent No.2 states that they
were afraid due to said incident and they left the agricultural land.
2. It is further stated in the First Information Report that in this
back drop at about 9.00 p.m. deceased Datta left the house saying that
he would return back after some time. However, he did not return.
Respondent No.2 states that when he went towards the field he found
that body of the deceased was hanging from Neem tree in their field.
He attributed the cause of suicidal death of his brother deceased Datta
to the applicants. On the basis of this report, the First Information
Report came to be registered with respondent No.1 police station.
Respondent No.1 has conducted investigation in the matter and has
filed charge sheet in the Court of learned Judicial Magistrate First
Cri. Appln. No. 2943-2023.odt
Class, Biloli. The learned Magistrate committed the case to the
Sessions Court and accordingly the matter is pending before the
learned Sessions Judge, Biloli, District Nanded, vide Sessions Case
No. 104 of 2023. The prosecution recorded statements of family
members and other villagers during the course of investigation. The
statements of family members are in tune with the First Information
Report. The post mortem report confirms that the death has occurred
due to hanging, the deceased has not left any suicidal note.
3. We have heard Advocate Mr. S.Y. Mahajan for the applicants,
learned A.P.P. Mr. A.R. Kale for respondent No.1 and learned Advocate
Mr. A.S. Jagtap for respondent No.2.
4. The learned Advocate for the applicants contended that the
essential ingredients of Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code are not
made out, taking the contents of the First Information Report and
other material including the statements of witnesses recorded under
Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure on their face value. As
against this, the learned A.P.P. and learned Advocate for respondent
No.2 contend that the acts of the applicants, particularly applicant
Nos.1 and 2 during the course of the incident that occurred on
27.05.2023 were instrumental in causing abetment to commit suicide
to the deceased Datta and, therefore, the First Information Report and
Cri. Appln. No. 2943-2023.odt
resultant criminal prosecution cannot be quashed at this stage.
5. With the able assistance of the learned Advocates we have
perused the First Information Report, statements in the charge sheet
and other documents filed along with the charge sheet. It is apparent
that the incident dated 27.05.2023 had occurred on account of
boundary dispute between the deceased on one side and owner of the
adjoining agricultural land i.e. applicants on the other. It appears that
tempers had risen and applicant Nos. 1 and 2 had charged towards the
deceased threatening to beat him. They had threatened to kill the
deceased if he did not leave the field as per the allegations in the First
Information Report. The deceased and his family members were
afraid of them and left the agricultural land. These allegations in the
First Information Report are repeated in the statements of witnesses
recorded under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. All
these allegations taken on the face value and assumed to be true and
correct, do not make out case of abetment of suicide. Mens rea is an
essential element of the offence of abetment of suicide. The offence
involves a mental process of instigating a person or intentionally
aiding him in committing drastic act of taking his own life. Intention
on the part of the accused of causing suicidal death is essential
element of the offence. The prosecution must at least prima facie
establish that the accused persons had an intention to bring about a
Cri. Appln. No. 2943-2023.odt
situation forcing the deceased to commit suicide. On examination of
the entire material on record, we find that all these elements are
pertinently missing in the present case. It transpires from the record
that there was a boundary dispute between the rival parties. Both
parties have their own version about the boundary separating their
agricultural land. During the course of sowing operations one party
i.e. applicants/accused became aggressive and threatened the other
party i.e. family of deceased and respondent No.2. However, they did
not physically attack any person although they threatened to kill the
deceased and his family members if they enter the said portion of an
agricultural land which the applicants claimed to be belonging to
them. Such a quarrel and/ or a threat given due to such quarrel
which occurred at the heat of the magnet would not mean that the
applicants desired or wanted that the deceased should commit suicide.
The entire material even if assumed to be true and accepted in its
entirety falls drastically short of bringing home any ingredients of
Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code. In such circumstances, it will
not be in the interest of justice to force the applicants to face criminal
prosecution. We are, therefore, of the considered view that the First
Information Report and resultant Sessions case are liable to be
quashed. Hence, the following order
ORDER
(I) The application is allowed.
Cri. Appln. No. 2943-2023.odt
(II) The proceeding in Sessions Case No. 104 of 2023 pending
before the learned learned Additional Sessions Judge,
Biloli, District Nanded, arising out of First Information Report
vide Crime No. 83 of 2023 registered with Ramtirth Police
Station, Taluka Biloli, District Nanded dated 28.05.2023, for
the offences punishable under Sections 306,504,506 read with
Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code and the said F.I.R. are
hereby quashed and set aside against all the applicants.
(ROHIT W. JOSHI) (SMT. VIBHA KANKANWADI )
JUDGE JUDGE
Y.S. Kulkarni
