Kerala HC grants bail to husband of law student who died by suicide

Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Monday granted bail to the husband of a 21-year-old law student who died by suicide leaving behind a note blaming him, his parents and a police officer for taking the extreme step.

Justice Gopinath P said that since the husband has spent more than 65 days in custody and the final report has been filed in the case, his continued detention was not necessary.

With this observation, the court granted him the relief subject to certain conditions which would be available in the detailed order.

The victim's parents-in-law were granted bail by the court on January 4 on which date it had denied the husband the same relief saying the allegations against him were very serious.

Subsequently, the husband had moved a second bail plea claiming that the police officer was responsible for the law student taking the extreme step.

The victim's husband and in-laws were arrested on November 24 last year and a case registered against them under Sections 304B (dowry death), 498A (dowry harassment), 306 (abetment of suicide) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.

While the maximum punishment for dowry death is life imprisonment, it is three years' jail term for dowry harassment and 10 years for abetment of suicide.

In her suicide note, Mofia Parveen, the third-year law student, had alleged that the then SHO of Aluva East Police Station had misbehaved with her when she went there with her father to give her statement regarding her complaint of dowry harassment and domestic violence against her husband and in-laws.

The incident had created an uproar in the state and the officer was relieved of his charge and later suspended.

According to Mofia's father, he went to the station with his daughter to give her statement and she had made it clear before going there that she did not want her submission to be recorded in her husband's presence.

However, the officer spoke to them in her husband's presence and also spoke inappropriately and rudely to him and his daughter, the father told the media and added that it was the officer's conduct that demoralised her.

After returning home, she was worried whether police would take any action in view of the officer's conduct at the station, the father of the student had claimed and said that she hanged herself in her room later that day.