Karnataka High Court rules loan repayment demand not abetment to suicide
Bengaluru: In a recent judgment, the Karnataka High Court has ruled that insisting an individual repay a borrowed loan does not constitute abetment to commit suicide under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Justice Shivashankar Amarannavar clarified that mere harassment or demands for loan repayment, lacking the intent to drive the person to suicide, do not qualify as abetment.
The case in question involved the suicide of Raju, who was married to Kavita, with one child together. Raju had borrowed money from the appellant, who allegedly harassed him for repayment. On April 25, 2019, the appellant and her daughter visited Raju's house, and on that day, Raju took his own life. The appellant was later convicted under Section 306 of the IPC, leading to an appeal in the High Court.
The appellant argued that the prosecution's evidence was insufficient to establish abetment, emphasizing that demanding loan repayment does not constitute encouragement for suicide. They maintained there was no intention on their part to drive Raju to suicide, suggesting his financial troubles might have contributed to his tragic decision.
The Karnataka High Court supported this argument, stating, "The appellant/accused has lent money to the deceased Raju. She was interested in getting back the said money. She had no intention of taking the life of the deceased Raju. Therefore, there is no clear mens rea on the part of the appellant/accused to abet the deceased to commit suicide."
The court emphasized that the prosecution failed to prove the required burden under Section 101 of the Evidence Act, highlighting that the circumstances presented did not lead to a definite inference of guilt.
The court cited several legal precedents to emphasize that the intention to provoke suicide must be present for an abetment charge to be valid. It also highlighted that each case of suicide is unique and depends on various factors, and that a person's reaction to a situation can vary significantly.
“There is no evidence to show that the appellant/accused had intention to drive out the deceased Raju to commit suicide. Looking from any angle, the act of the appellant/accused harassing the deceased for repayment of money borrowed and threatening him to take his life does not amount to abetment,” the Bench stated.
As a result, the High Court allowed the appeal, overturned the appellant's conviction, and directed the refund of any fines previously paid.
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'Low-quality' catheters supplied to West Bengal govt hospitals at high price, probe ordered
Kolkata (PTI): The West Bengal health department has launched a probe into the supplies of allegedly low-quality and locally made catheters at a high price to several government hospitals, posing a risk to the lives of patients undergoing treatment in these facilities, officials said.
Such central venous catheters (CVCs) were allegedly supplied to at least five medical colleges and hospitals in the state, defying allocation of international standard-compliant CVCs, they said.
The distribution company, which has been accused of supplying these catheters to government hospitals, admitted to the fault but placed the blame on its employees.
"We started checking stocks some time back and found these locally made CVCs in my hospital store. These catheters are of low quality as compared to those allocated by the state. We have informed the state health department," a senior official of the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital told PTI.
Low-quality catheters were also found in the stores of other hospitals, which indicates "possible involvement of insiders in the scam", a health department official said.
The low-quality CVCs were supplied by a distributor in the Hatibagan area in the northern part of Kolkata for the last three to four months, he said.
"Such kinds of local CVCs are priced around Rs 1,500 but the distributor took Rs 4,177 for each device," the official said.
A CVC is a thin and flexible tube that is inserted into a vein to allow for the administration of fluids, blood, and other treatment. It's also clinically called a central line catheter.
"An initial probe revealed that the distribution company Prakash Surgical had supplied the low-quality and locally manufactured catheters to several government hospitals instead of the CVCs of the government-designated international company.
"All the units will be tested and a proper investigation is on to find out who benefited from these supplies," the health department official said.
The distribution company blamed its employees for the supply of inferior quality catheters.
"I was sick for a few months. Some employees of the organisation made this mistake. We are taking back all those units that have gone to the hospitals. It's all about misunderstanding," an official of the distribution company told PTI.
According to another state health department official, a complaint was lodged with the police in this connection.
Asked about how many patients were affected by the usage of such low-quality CVCs, the official said, "The probe would also try to find that out".
According to sources in the health department, some of the staff of the hospitals' equipment receiving departments and some local officials of international organisations might be involved in the alleged irregularities.
