"Demand of money” a vague term: Bombay High Court acquits person accused of harassment, abetment to suicide of wife

The Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court on January 19 acquitted a person accused of offences of cruelty to wife under Section 498A of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and abetment to suicide under Section 306 of IPC (Prashant Keshaorao v. State of Maharashtra)..The Court said that the allegation against the husband of "demand of money" is a vague term and in the absence of specific instances, general allegations of harassment cannot be a ground to invoke Section 498A, particularly when other co-accused had been acquitted in the case.Further, such general allegations will not be sufficient to rope in the charge of abetment to suicide when there is absolutely no material pointing to the accused instigating the deceased to commit suicide, the Court ruled. ."There is absolutely no material which could be pointed out by the prosecution with regard to instigation by the appellant to the deceased to commit suicide. On the contrary, the conduct of the appellant throughout is sufficient to infer that he was more interested in company of the deceased than her elimination," the Court noted. .The judgment was delivered by Justice Pushpa V Ganediwala in an appeal against a 2008 judgment of Additional Sessions Judge, Darwha who had convicted the husband-appellant for abetment to suicide and cruelty to wife. .The prosecution’s case was that deceased wife was harassed by the appellant and his family members for nine years.During this period, whenever there was an incident of harassment, the victim would come back to her parent’s house and the appellant would come to take her back..The appellant refuted the allegations by pointing out that the nature of allegations were general and common to all accused. All the other accused except the appellant had been acquitted of their charges, he highlighted..The Court accepted the contention noting that no specific incident of harassment could be brought on record by the prosecution and the allegations were general in nature. ."The evidence is with regard to quarrel between the husband and wife and in that quarrel, he used to beat her for the demand of money. The demand of money is also a vague term and in the absence of other particulars to establish the link, the offence of harassment, as contemplated under Section 498-A of the Indian Penal Code, is not made out," the Court held..With regard to the charge of abetment to suicide, the Court observed that the conduct of the appellant showed that he was more interested in company of the deceased than her elimination.."From time to time he brought the deceased from her father’s place and also issued notices for restitution of conjugal rights. Moreover, he also took the deceased to hospital and refused to give body of the deceased for funeral to PW-3 – father of the deceased and the appellant himself performed the funeral at his place," the Court noted. .Hence, the accused cannot be punished for offence of abetment to suicide, the Court concluded. .[Read Order]