Tunisha Sharma death: What is abetment to suicide law in India? How many years in jail can Sheezan Khan face

TV actress Tunisha Sharma’s sudden death stunned the entire television industry to the core, and the actor’s former boyfriend Sheezan Khan was arrested by the police on the charges of abetment to suicide after Sharma’s mother filed an FIR.

According to the FIR filed by Tunisha Sharma’s mother, the breakup with Sheezan Khan was very hard on the actor’s mental well-being, and Khan pushed her to commit suicide. Meanwhile, Sharma’s death has not been ruled as a suicide till now, and it is also being investigated as a murder.

Sheezan Khan has been sent to four days of police custody on the charges of abetment to suicide, while his lawyer has said that all the allegations against the actor are baseless. Reports claim that Sharma was in Khan’s make-up room just moments before she took the drastic step to allegedly hang herself.

Why was Sheezan Khan arrested?

Sheezan Mohammad Khan was arrested by the police a day after Tunisha Sharma’s death on the sets of their TV show. Khan was arrested by the police on the charges of abetment to suicide, as opposed to all the rumours of him being arrested on charges of murder or conspiracy.

While Tunisha Sharma was found hanging from the ceiling of a room inside the set of a TV show, her death has not been ruled as suicide as of yet since there was no suicide note discovered by the police. Murder investigations are also running alongside the suicide probe.

What is abetment to suicide law in India?

The laws for abetment to suicide of a person in India come under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The person abetting suicide is held accountable for the death or injury of a person under the following conditions –

• They instigate someone to commit suicide.
• They take part in a conspiracy to make a person commit suicide.
• They help the victim deliberately so he can commit suicide by doing an act or not doing something that he was bound to do.
• In this specific case, it is being claimed that Sheezan Khan’s breakup with the actress pushed her to allegedly commit suicide last week, after which he was arrested by the Vasai police.

If Sheezan Khan is found guilty under the abetment to suicide law in India, he can be imprisoned for up to 14 years and will also have to pay a hefty fine. As of now, no allegations against Khan have been proven by the police.

READ | Tunisha Sharma death: Actor’s uncle claims Sheezan Khan cheated on her, was ‘in touch with many girls’