A husband’s sexual perversion might have led to the death of his wife. But that cannot be taken to mean abetment to suicide, the Indian Supreme Court has held.
An Indian woman poisons her daughters to death and commits suicide, leaving a note it was her husband’s sexual perversion that drove her to death. But that does not seem to be enough grounds for the apex court of the country to punish the husband.
A Supreme Court bench comprising Justices Arijit Pasayat and P Sathasivam held Monday that the husband’s act did not amount to abetment of suicide as defined under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code.“In cases of alleged abetment of suicide, there must be proof of direct or indirect acts of incitement to the commission of suicide. The mere fact that the husband treated the deceased wife with cruelty is not enough,” the court said.
Meera of Faridabad, not far from the national capital of New Delhi, had left a suicide note alleging her husband Mohan (both names changed) used to torture her for sex. Actually he had some severe erectile dysfunction, but he would not leave her in peace. He had also gone about slandering her saying she was a lesbian.
Tired of his torture, she chose to end her life and also poison her own daughters to death, her note added.
The forensic report too confirmed all three deaths were due to consumption of poison, and the trial court convicted Mohan of abetment of suicide and sentenced him to seven years of rigorous imprisonment.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court confirmed the trial court’s verdict. Mohan then moved the Supreme Court, which held that the accused was a sexual pervert all right, but that was not sufficient to satisfy the requirements of Section 306.
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