The Beed special court has rejected Vishnu Chate’s plea for discharge in the murder of sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh, stating he “appears to have been a member of the organised crime syndicate and was involved in continuing unlawful activities.” Chate had claimed insufficient grounds for charges, but the court found prima facie evidence against him.
The Supreme Court ruled that proving mens rea is essential for abetment of suicide under Section 306 of the IPC. In a case involving a man and his family accused of motivating his wife’s suicide, the court determined insufficient evidence of intent to sustain charges, emphasizing a critical temporal link between instigation and the act.
