ARUN G NAIR Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The above criminal miscellaneous case and criminal revision petition are connected. The parties are one and the same. The Annexures are shown as referred to in Crl. M.C.No.5423/2023.

(2.) The petitioner married the daughter of the 2nd respondent, viz., Monisha, on 1/9/2014. At the time of the marriage, the petitioner was working as a male nurse in Australia and his wife was working as a Software Engineer at Ernakulam. After the marriage, they left to Australia on 7/9/2015. The wife of the petitioner committed suicide in Australia by hanging at their residence on 7/2/2017. On 17/2/2017, the 2nd respondent submitted Annexure II complaint to the Superintendent of Police, Kottayam seeking investigation into the untimely death of her daughter. It was alleged that the deceased was subjected to physical and mental cruelty by the petitioner which forced her to commit suicide. On 19/2/2017, the 2nd respondent submitted another complaint (Annexure III) in continuation to her earlier complaint to the Superintendent of Police, Kottayam seeking to register a crime under Sec. 498A of IPC and to investigate the same. Annexure III complaint was forwarded to the Ponkunnam Police who registered Annexure IV crime against the petitioner alleging offences punishable under Ss. 406, 420 and 498A of IPC. During the course of investigation, the mother and sister of the petitioner were also arrayed as accused in the crime. After investigation, the final report was submitted before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court - II, Kanjirappilly (for short, 'the Magistrate Court') on 14/6/2017 against the petitioner, his sister and his mother for the offences punishable under Ss. 294(b), 323, 406, 420, 498A r/w 34 of IPC. The learned Magistrate took cognizance of the offences and numbered the case as CC No.487/2017.

(3.) The petitioner, along with his mother and sister, filed Crl. M.C.No.6565/2017 before this court to quash the final report and all further proceedings in CC No. 487/2017. This court, as per Annexure VI order dtd. 22/10/2019, quashed the entire proceedings against the mother and sister of the petitioner. In respect of the petitioner, offences under Ss. 406 and 420 of the IPC were quashed, and offences under Ss. 294(b), 323 and 498A of the IPC were maintained and allowed to proceed. Though the petitioner challenged Annexure VI order before the Supreme Court, he did not succeed.