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Life is a gift of God and he alone can take it. Suicide is the act of ending one's own life. Phil Donahue says "Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem". People commit suicide as a result of life stress, depression, relationship issues, financial crisis etc. According to WHO, more than 7 lakh people take their own life every year globally.
It is considered to be the duty of the state to protect the life of the citizens. Hence the lawmakers criminalized the attempt to suicide. There have been long debates about whether the 'Right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the constitution also includes 'Right to die. Suicide in itself was not a crime obviously. But if one fails in his attempt to commit suicide, it is punishable under Section 309 of the Indian Penal Code. According to Section 309 of IPC, "Whoever attempts to commit suicide and does any act towards the commission of such offence, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year 1 [or with fine, or with both]." The term 'Suicide' is however not defined in the Indian Penal Code.
In the case of State of Maharashtra v Maruti Shripati Dubal, the Bombay High Court held that right to die is included under Article 21 and hence Section 309 of the IPC was held unconstitutional. In the case of P. Rathinam v. Union of India. Then in the case of Gian Kaur v State of Punjab, the Supreme Court held that “Right to life does not include Right to die in Article 21 and hence Section 309 of IPC is constitutionally valid.”
In the present time, depression is the number one cause of suicide among people of all age groups. Mental Health issues have been ignored for the longest time. In fact, in India, it has been taboo. There has been little to no awareness about mental health in Indian households. Even young children commit suicide because of traumatic life experiences or tremendous academic pressure.
With the evolution of time, there was a better understanding of mental health issues. Anyone who attempts to commit suicide would already be suffering from mental agony. To punish such a person would only add to his/her misery. Keeping this in mind, Mental Health Care Bill was introduced in 2013. According to Section 124 of this bill, “Notwithstanding anything contained in Section 309 of the IPC, any person who attempts suicide shall be presumed, unless proved otherwise, to be suffering from mental illness at the time of the bid and shall not be liable to punishment under the said section”.
It was proposed that remedial measures must be adopted rather than punishing such persons such as counselling.
Conclusion
Law must evolve with time. It must be amended to cater for the needs of changing the behaviour of society. Mental Health issues were identified and Section 309 was decriminalized. Although this Section is still valid the Mental Healthcare Bill has limited its application. It however was not the intent of the bill to promote suicide but an attempt to lessen the suffering of the person. Anyone suffering from such tendencies must seek appropriate help.
Citation
For a more detailed understanding, refer to the case study of “Smt. Gian Kaur vs The State Of Punjab” by clicking the link below.
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