India In Dire Need for Stricter Suicide Law

The Section 306 of IPC states that “If any person commits suicide, whoever abets the commission of such suicide, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine,” reported BBC News.

Last year suicides of more than 13,000 farmers were witnessed in India as they were unable to pay off their debts after their crops failed and most fingers were pointed towards the money lenders for provoking the farmers. Unfortunately, no extreme punishment was imposed upon the money lenders as there was no accurate evidence against them.

Even in the case of Suraj Pancholi on girlfriend Jiah’s death, though he has spent few days behind the bars on charge of abetment, he got out on bail recently as the law does not find any evidence against him which incited his girlfriend to take such a step.

In February 2010, the Delhi High Court while hearing a case regarding abetment of suicide expressed that the tendency to take one’s own life in human beings is very complex and hazardous and also observed, “Different individuals in the same situation react and behave differently because of the personal meaning they add to each event, thus accounting for individual vulnerability to suicide."

As such, India has a long way to go in combating the rates of suicide in the country as the existing law is not strict enough to instill upon the minds of people to not commit such an act.