One incident of husband slapping on wife's overstaying at parent's home not cruelty: Gujarat HC

Gujarat High Court has quashed the conviction and sentence of a husband in a decades-old case involving the alleged suicide of his wife in May 1996, observing “one incident of husband slapping the wife on the ground of staying overnight at parental home without informing him would not be counted as cruelty”.

The high court, while allowing the appeal filed by the accused, set aside the order of the Valsad Sessions Court that had convicted him under Sections 498A (cruelty by husband) and 306 (abetment to suicide) IPC. The trial court had sentenced him to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment for abetment and one year for cruelty.

The prosecution alleged that within a year of marriage solemnised in 1995, the husband subjected his wife to mental and physical harassment, driving her to die by hanging in Sarigam Pahadpada. The case hinged on claims of persistent beatings and cruelty.

However, the high court held that the evidence fell short of proving the charges beyond reasonable doubt, the court noted.

It emphasised that the proximate cause linking any alleged cruelty to the suicide was not established. The bench further observed that allegations of "persistent, unbearable continuous beatings" require cogent and reliable evidence to qualify as cruelty capable of driving a woman to suicide.

Witnesses, including the deceased's parents, failed to substantiate such claims. The father admitted he did not witness the slapping incident, while the mother confirmed it stemmed from the wife's overnight stay without informing the husband.

The court highlighted inconsistencies: no prior complaints of beatings were filed, despite the parents' awareness; no community panchayat intervention occurred; and the wife continued returning to her matrimonial home.

Quarrels reportedly arose from the husband's late-night returns after playing 'banjo' at marriages, but these were deemed ordinary domestic disputes.

Police investigations revealed no recorded complaints of harassment. The medical officer confirmed asphyxia due to hanging as the cause of death.

The High Court concluded that the prosecution failed to prove wilful conduct amounting to cruelty or abetment. The witnesses failed to prove the case of cruelty and of abetment for the commission of suicide," it stated, terming the trial court's findings erroneous.