Supreme Court upholds quashing of suicide abetment case in death of Kannada film producer Soundarya Jagadeesh

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the Karnataka High Court's order quashing abetment to suicide case against business partners and manager of M/s Soundarya Constructions with regard to death of Kannada film producer and businessman Soundarya Jagadeesh on April 14, 2024.

A bench of Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih, however, allowed a plea by R Sashireekha, the wife of the deceased against quashing of cheating case lodged against accused V S Suresh, S P Hombanna and S Sudhindra on the basis of a complaint lodged on May 22, 2024.

The FIR was lodged 39 days after the incident in view of alleged death note found during the cleaning of wardrobe by the wife.

The note allegedly claimed that the deceased was cheated by the accused, and he suffered loss of Rs 60 Crore.

On a plea by the respondent accused, the High Court on September 3, 2024 held there was not a titter of a document that would pin them down for any act of abetment for suicide. It also said if the deceased was lured into something during his lifetime, it was for him to file a complaint and not upon his wife. It also said the document allegedly forged by the accused was five-year-old and had no proximity to the death.

Challenging the decision, the wife's counsel said that the HC almost conducted a mini trial, not permissible under its jurisdiction under Section 482 of CrPC.

The counsel for the accused said the High Court, in a well-reasoned order, found that the allegations do not constitute an offence punishable under Sections 306 and 420 of IPC.

The state counsel D L Chidananda said the investigating agency found sufficient material to proceed in the case.

The bench, however, said the case of the appellant-complainant was that even much before her husband died, he used to be blackmailed by the accused.

However, "the question remained as to why she kept silent from April 14, 2024 till May 22, 2024. If her husband was blackmailed, then nothing could prevent the appellant-complainant from reporting this matter to the police immediately after the deceased committed suicide," the bench said.

The court opined all these allegations were an "afterthought".

Assuming the allegations to be true, even otherwise, the case under Section 306 of IPC would not be made out, the bench said.

The court also found no reasonable nexus between the period to which the allegations pertained and the date of death.

However, the bench felt the High Court acted in a casual and cursory manner and erred in quashing the proceedings for cheating under Section 420 of IPC in absence of reasons.

"If the HC was of the view that even investigation papers as collected by the investigating agency did not constitute an offence punishable under Section 420 of IPC, then the least that was expected of the single judge was to give reasons as to why the material collected by the investigating agency and placed before him was not sufficient, the bench said.

The court, however, allowed the respondent accused to file discharge application before the trial court, which would be considered without being influenced by the observations made in the HC order and this decision.