The Kerala High Court has ruled that casual remarks such as “go away and die” often employed during a quarrel between two people do not amount to abetment of suicide.
The bench of justice C Pratheep Kumar made the observations, relying on a 1995 Supreme Court order in the Swami Prahaladdas v/s State of MP, while examining a criminal revision petition filed by a 30-year-old man who faced charges including abetment to suicide.
In this case, the petitioner was in a relationship with a married woman. When the woman came to know that he was planning to marry another woman, she inquired with him, resulting in a verbal quarrel. During the argument, he allegedly told her to “go away and die’. The woman and her five-and-a-half year-old daughter subsequently died by suicide in 2023.
The man had filed the petition challenging an order of a sessions court rejecting his plea for discharge in the case. The sessions court had decided to frame charges against him under sections 306 (abetment of suicide) and 204 (destruction of document to prevent its production as evidence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
“What is important is the intention of the accused and not what is felt by the deceased. In the instant case also, the words ‘go away and die’ made by the petitioner was in the midst of a wordy quarrel between the petitioner and the deceased in a heat of passion without having any intention to instigate the deceased to commit suicide and as such the offence under section 306 IPC is not made out,” the high court bench ruled on January 28.
{{/usCountry}}“What is important is the intention of the accused and not what is felt by the deceased. In the instant case also, the words ‘go away and die’ made by the petitioner was in the midst of a wordy quarrel between the petitioner and the deceased in a heat of passion without having any intention to instigate the deceased to commit suicide and as such the offence under section 306 IPC is not made out,” the high court bench ruled on January 28.
{{/usCountry}}“Since the allegations do not constitute the offence under section 306 of IPC, the offence under section 204 of IPC will also not be attracted,” it added.