Man sent to 4-yr RI for abetting suicide of former married lover
Mumbai Observing that the act of the accused and his continued course of conduct created a situation that left the victim with no choice, a sessions court last week sentenced a 30-year-old man to four years of rigorous imprisonment for abetting the suicide of his former lover, a married woman with children, in 2020.
The accused, Panvel-based Sachin Phadke, pressured the victim to leave her husband and also threatened to kill her family if she did not relent. Rohini died by jumping off Khopate Bridge in Navi Mumbai on July 28, 2020, leaving her chappals and purse with an identification card behind, leading police to suspect that she had taken the extreme step. Her body was found a day later.
In a 26-page judgment copy, Additional Sessions Judge Santosh R Chavan noted that from audio recordings of phone conversations, it was evident that the victim realised her mistake and requested the accused to forgive her.
However, the accused continuously pressurised her for marriage. In the recordings, the victim also said she would give her life but would not marry the accused.
"The accused had threatened to spoil the deceased's matrimonial life and cause injury to her family. The accused knew that the deceased was a married woman having two daughters; his marriage with the deceased was not possible. Despite this, he was continuously pressurising her for marriage and threatening her.
The accused knew the consequences of his act. There is instigation on the part of the accused," the judge said.
The judge found a "direct and proximate link between the accused's act of abetment and the decision of the deceased to die by suicide".
The judge found him guilty under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code relating to abetment to suicide. The maximum sentence attracted was 10 years of imprisonment.
Initially, the reason for the victim's suicide was unknown, and no complaint was filed.
However, after the victim's last rites, her brother discovered call recordings on her mobile phone. These recordings revealed conversations between her and Phadke, indicating a relationship. It also showed that Phadke was mentally and physically harassing her, pressuring her for marriage, and threatening to defame her and harm her family.
Subsequently, after a chance encounter at a petrol pump, where the victim's daughter recognised the accused and informed her uncle who accompanied her, the family filed a complaint with the Uran police station in Oct 2020.
The daughter told the uncle the accused had turned up at their home once and beaten the victim. The accused was arrested and released on bail on Sept 16, 2022.
The prosecution examined 10 witnesses, including the victim's minor daughter, husband, brothers and father. They iterated the version that she died due to the harassment of the accused. All denied the defence lawyer's suggestion that she was depressed due to marital woes and her husband's drinking.
"After careful examination, I am convinced that she (the minor daughter) was neither tutored nor used for manipulation by the prosecution; hence, her testimony is admissible. Her evidence corroborates with the evidence of other witnesses," the judge said.
The judge found the delay in the police complaint adequately explained due to the family's grief.
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