KHETA RAM Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By way of this revision, the petitioners herein have approached this Court for challenging the order dated 30.01.2016 passed by learned Sessions Judge, Jodhpur Metro in Sessions Case No.101/2015 whereby, charge was framed against the accused petitioners for the offence under Section 306 IPC.

(2.) Facts in brief are that the respondent complainant Mohit son of Hiraram lodged a written report at the Police Station Jhanwar on 30.03.2015 alleging inter alia that his father Hiraram had gone out on the previous day and did not return home. On this, a search was conducted and at around 4 O 'Clock', his father's deadbody was found hanging in a barn located in his uncle Sukhram's plot. It was further alleged in the report that for the past few years, his father and uncles were at loggerheads over an issue of exchange of agricultural fields and reports were lodged at the police Station Dhawa as well as Jhanwar in relation thereto. However, no concrete action was taken on the reports. The police tried to mediate between the parties but Sukhram and Khetaram did not relent from their offensive tactics and kept on directly or indirectly insulting and intimidating Hiraram who was maligned in the society as well as in presence of his sisters, and finally being extremely frustrated and left with no hope, he committed suicide. On the basis of this report, an FIR No.31/2015 was lodged at the Police Station Jhanwar for the offence under Section 306 IPC and investigation was commenced. During the course of investigation, a suicide note allegedly written by the deceased was recovered. The deadbody was subjected to postmortem and the cause of death was opined to be hanging. Statement of Smt. Parmeshwari wife of the deceased Hiraram was recorded who alleged that her husband and his brothers Laduram, Ramlal, Sukhdev and Khetaram were not on good terms with each other. In the year 2007, they executed a mutual settlement for partition of their agricultural lands and were cultivating their own shares. A formal document was drawn up and demarcation was also got done through the Patwari and fences were also erected for identifying the respective shares of the parties. However, despite the mutual partition, Sukhdev and Khetaram continued to quarrel with her husband Hiraram and did not let him live in peace. They were continuously pressurising Hiraram to exchange the fields. Because of the intimidating behaviour of the accused party, Hiraram's family shifted to Jodhpur on the advise of Parmeshwari's father. Hiraram used to work as a construction worker to feed the family. During rainy season, he used to go to the village for cultivating his lands but the accused did not allow him to do so peacefully. They would not permit Hiraram to bring a tractor into the field. The stones lying at their dhani were stolen by Sukhdev. About three years ago, her husband was assaulted and disrobed by the female family members of Sukhdev and Khetaram while performing the farming operations. Whenever he tried to meet people in the village, he was abused and insulted. Foul words and insinuations were hurled at him. Because of the threats given by the accused, her husband was forced to use an indirect and circuitous route for reaching his fields. The accused prepared fraudulent documents by pressuring Hiraram and got the agricultural land partitioned in an ulterior manner. Gordhanlal Patwari also collaborated with the accused in their evil design. Her husband took preventive measures on coming to know of this fraudulent intent of the accused and thus they could not succeed. On 28.03.2015, Hiraram's nieces (sister's daughters) were to be married and all the brothers were invited to participate in the Maayra Ceremony. However, Khetaram and Sukhdev misguided her nanad (mother of the brides) not to invite Hiraram in the ceremony and pressurised her that in case Hiraram was invited, they would not participate in the ceremony. Her husband was not allowed to meet his sister and participate in the Maayra Ceremony. Because of the oppressive and offensive tactics of the accused party, Hiraram became totally dejected and was left with no option but to end his life. On 30.03.2015 while she had gone to her father's house, she received information of her husband having committed suicide inside Sukhdev's dhani. Similar statements were given by Chhogaram, Bhabhutaram, Sharda, etc. However, Smt. Shanti, sister of the deceased and the present petitioners, upon being examined under Section 161 Cr.P.C., categorically stated that all her brothers had partitioned their lands with their own free will and consent. Her daughters were to be married on 28.03.2015. She went to her maternal home four days before the wedding and invited all the brothers to come and participate in the Maayra and wedding Ceremonies. Sukhdev, Khetaram, Ramlal's son Prithviraj and Hiraram's wife Parmeshwari came to attend the wedding and performed the Maayra Ceremony. On 28.03.2015, Parmeshwari left her house and went to Jodhpur. On 29.03.2015, she came to know that Hiraram had committed suicide by hanging himself in an abandoned barn in Sukhdev's field. On 30.03.2015, she also went to Hiraram's home to offer condolences. After all social and customary rites and ceremonies had been performed, she returned to her house. Her brother Sukhdev worked at Jodhpur and seldom came to village. Hiraram, Sukhram and Khetaram had a long standing dispute over their agricultural lands. Another brother, Laduram sold his share of land to Shukhram's wife Teejo. As a consequence, Hiraram became annoyed and demanded that Laduram should also give him a part of the land but Laduram refused. Laduram and Prithviraj gave similar statements as Smt. Shanti. A written note of Hira Ram portrayed to be a suicide note was also recovered and finally, the investigating officer, upon concluding investigation, proceeded to file a charge-sheet against the petitioners herein for the offence under Section 306 IPC. The accused claimed discharge. However, the learned Trial Judge, proceeded to frame charge against both the accused petitioners for the offence under Section 306 IPC by order dated 30.01.2016 and hence this revision.

(3.) Shri R.S. Gill, learned counsel representing the petitioners vehemently urged that there is no evidence worth the name on record of the case to even prima-facie satisfy the Court that the accused petitioners instigated or abetted Hiraram for committing suicide. He urged that the so-called suicide note on which, the prosecution and the trial court emphasised, was written way back in the year 2007 whereas the incident is of the year 2015 and not even a remote connection exists between the story narrated in the note and in the act of suicide. The so-called land dispute was a creation of the deceased himself and the accused petitioners had no part to play therein. The lands had been partitioned officially way back in the year 2007. Despite that and even though the partition was mutual, Hiraram was persistently pressing the petitioners to exchange the lands. He urged that even if the deceased was carrying any misgivings about the partition of land and wanted to alter the settlement, he should have resorted to the appropriate legal remedy for redressal thereof. There was no occasion for him to end his life merely because his demand to exchange the agricultural lands by unsettling the mutual partition was not sated. Without prejudice to the submission that there is no material worth the name on the record of the case to show that the accused persons insulted or humiliated Hiraram in the society, Shri Gill urged that even if the said allegation is accepted as true for a moment then also, no inference can be drawn merely therefrom so as to justify the order framing charge against the petitioners for the offence under Section 306 IPC. He further urged that the allegation as set out in the statement of Smt. Parmeshwari wife of the deceased that the petitioners did not allow the deceased to participate in the Maayra Ceremony of Shanti Devi's daughters stands totally falsified by the categoric statement of Smt. Shanti who clearly ruled out any such happening. He thus implored the Court to accept the revision and set aside the order under challenge criticizing the same to be totally illegal and unsupported by evidence.