Holding that the surviving partner in a mutual suicide pact had to be punished for abetment, the Supreme Court on February 17 upheld the conviction of the boyfriend of Telugu film actress Prathyusha in her death case of 2002 as both of them had consumed poison together but he survived. Dismissing his plea challenging the conviction, the apex court directed G. Siddhartha Reddy to surrender within four weeks.
A bench of Justices Rajesh Bindal and Manmohan said that a suicide pact involved mutual encouragement and reciprocal commitment to die together, and the survivor’s participation acts as a direct catalyst for the deceased’s actions.