The Karnataka High Court recently set aside a lower court’s verdict that convicted a woman and her partner for abetment of suicide of her husband. Hearing the case, the Court observed that the wife will not be liable if her husband commits suicide due to her illicit relationship.

The single-judge bench of Justice Shivashankar Amarannavar stated that the husband dying by suicide due to his wife’s illicit relationship with her partner and co-accused was adequate ground for convicting them for the offense of abetment of suicide under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code.

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While noting the accused’s use of words to her husband before his suicide, “go die,” a few days before, the court said that mere utterance of such words without any instigation did not amount to abetment. The court went on to explain the definition of abetment, saying that there should be instigation to do that thing, and then it amounts to abetment.

The court was hearing the appeal filed by Prema and Basavalinge Gowda against the trial court’s conviction order.

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As per the prosecution case, the accused were having illicit relations, and the deceased husband of the accused used to object to the relationship. Despite objection, the accused wife continued her relationship with the accused partner. The accused partner had also asked the diseased to go and die so that both of them could live happily.

The Court noted that it appeared that the husband was sensitive as his wife had an illicit relationship with the co-accused. “Upset by that, he might have committed suicide,” the Court stated, adding that the evidence on record will not establish that the accused persons, by their acts, abetted the deceased to commit suicide.

However, the court acquitted the accused persons of all charges against them in the case.