The Bombay High Court has granted bail to Nizamuddin Shaikh, who was arrested in May this year for allegedly abetting his wife's suicide in 2021. Justice Manish Pitale, in his order on Tuesday, considered Shaikh's health condition and the fact that the trial is unlikely to begin soon.
The court noted that prolonging his incarceration served no purpose, especially given his medical condition—gangrene in his foot. Justice Pitale observed, “The trial will take its own time to conclude, and in the meantime, the applicant would continue to languish in jail. His health condition has been brought to the court’s attention, which is another reason to grant bail.”
The woman’s mother filed a complaint with Meghwadi police station on March 15, 2021, accusing Shaikh and his parents of abetment to suicide, cruelty, causing hurt, and criminal intimidation. She alleged that her daughter was driven to suicide due to harassment by Shaikh and his family.
Shaikh’s lawyer, Sunil Pandey, argued that Shaikh was in Kuwait at the time of his wife’s death, with the only accusation being that he made phone calls, threatening and harassing.
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Shaikh’s family members, who were also arrested, have already been released on bail. Pandey further emphasised Shaikh's medical condition as a factor supporting his bail request.
The state’s lawyer, Balraj Kulkarni, opposed the bail, contending that Shaikh had been absconding for a long time before his arrest in May. However, the court observed that Shaikh had moved to Kuwait in 2018 for work, and while the allegations suggested that he made threatening calls to his wife, there was no concrete evidence of any physical abuse or immediate harassment prior to the suicide.
Justice Pitale highlighted that although general claims of harassment were made, there was no specific reference to any overt act by Shaikh just before his wife's suicide. "Prima facie, the essential ingredients of the offence under Section 306 (abetment to suicide) of the IPC are not made out against the applicant," the judge noted.
