‘Grossly Illegal & Abuse of Process of Law’: SC Quashes FIR Against Officer in Suicide Abetment Case

The Supreme Court recently quashed criminal proceedings initiated against then District Savings Officer in Uttar Pradesh for offences under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act) and for abetment of suicide of a senior clerk, finding that there was no sufficient grounds to proceed in the matter.

“We have no hesitation in holding that the necessary ingredients of the offence of abetment to commit suicide are not made out from the charge sheet and hence allowing prosecution of the appellant is grossly illegal for the offences punishable under Section 306 IPC and Section 3(2)(v) of the SC/ST Act and tantamounts to gross abuse of process to law,” a bench of Justices B R Gavai and Sandeep Mehta said.

The court pointed out it is not in dispute that the prosecution case is entirely based on the suicide note left behind by the deceased before ending his life.

“On a minute perusal of the suicide note, we do not find that the contents thereof indicate any act or omission on the part of the accused appellant which could make him responsible for abetment as defined under Section 107 IPC,” the bench said.

The court also pointed out the note clearly showed that the deceased was frustrated on account of work pressure and was apprehensive of various random factors unconnected to his official duties. He was also feeling the pressure of working in two districts.

“However, such apprehensions expressed in the suicide note, by no stretch of imagination, can be considered sufficient to attribute to the appellant, an act or omission constituting the elements of abetment to commit suicide,” the bench said.

In the case, in the first instance, the court noted the investigating agency itself proposed a closure report in the matter after conducting thorough investigation.

“In this background, we are of the opinion that there do not exist any justifiable ground so as to permit the prosecution of the appellant for the offences under Section 306 IPC and Section 3(2)(v) of the SC/ST Act,” the bench said.

The court quashed and set aside all proceedings initiated against appellant Prabhat Kumar Mishra alias Prabhat Mishra by allowing his appeal against the Allahabad High Court’s order, which on July 26, 2022 declined his application under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

The FIR was lodged in the matter in 2002 after Data Ram, a senior clerk, in Child Welfare Department district, Fatehgarh, ended his life at his home by consuming some poisonous substance and leaving behind a note. The Investigating Officer filed a closure report. However, the case was reopened.

The appellant contended the deceased was frustrated and bothered by the style of functioning of the appellant herein and of Shashidhar Dwivedi, CDO, and thus he felt that he was left with no option, but to end his life. He also seems to have been bothered by the pressure of working in two districts and took the extreme step of ending his life.

The state counsel opposed the plea, saying it is not a fit case warranting interference in well reasoned order by the High Court.

“We may take note of the fact that the prosecution of the appellant herein for the offence under Section 3(2)(v) of the SC/ST Act is ex facie illegal and unwarranted because it is nowhere the case of the prosecution in the entire charge-sheet that the offence under IPC was committed by the appellant upon the deceased on the basis of his caste,” the bench said.

With regard to offence under Section 306 of the IPC, the bench said the parameters required to bring an act or omission elaborated time and again are not met in the present case, the court said.