One of employee has committed suicide after receiving show cause notice for his misconduct in handling and discharging his duty. On receiving a report from the joint director that the PO has not handling the case with due diligence therefore, lost the matter in the court. Thereafter, a fact-finding inquiry was set up and receiving that findings a show cause notice was served. When he committed suicide, an FIR has been lodged against me for the offence under Section 306/107 IPC. Please suggest what to do next.
Asked from: Uttar Pradesh
Based on the facts of your case, it appears there was no instigation or incitement from your side to commit suicide. When the show cause notice was served, the deceased had the opportunity to explain the situation or present his stance against the allegation of misconduct. Until then, no adverse action was likely to be taken against him.
There was no threat posed to him as a result of the show cause notice. In cases of alleged abetment of suicide, there must be proof of direct or indirect acts of incitement to the commission of suicide. There must be clear and convincing evidence of such acts. In the case of suicide, mere allegations of harassment by another person are insufficient unless the actions of the accused compelled the victim to commit suicide, and such actions must be closely connected to the time of the incident.
According to this legal position, there must be direct or indirect evidence showing that the accused, through a continuous course of conduct, created a situation where the deceased felt they had no option but to commit suicide. In your case, there is no evidence of any such continuous conduct by the accused.
Therefore, prima facie, there is no evidence to support the allegation of inducement or abetment of suicide. In the case of Ude Singh vs. State of Haryana AIR 2019 SC 4570, the Supreme Court held that:
If the accused plays an active role in damaging the victim’s self-esteem and self-respect, which eventually drives the victim to commit suicide, the accused may be held guilty of abetment of suicide.
However, issuing a show cause notice following a preliminary inquiry does not in any way tarnish the self-esteem of the deceased. It is part of a departmental inquiry process when an allegation of misconduct or dereliction of duty has been made against an employee.
No punishment was imposed with the issuance of the show cause notice, nor did it have any adverse impact on the character roll of the deceased employee. Under these circumstances, no offence is made out against you.
It is advisable to file a petition in the High Court under Section 528 BNSS for quashing the FIR, as no offence is made out against the accused. The FIR may be quashed by the High Court. For more legal help please visit Kanoon India.
