BALAJI LAW COLLEGE

Practical Training Paper IV - Moot Court Exercise

MOOT PROBLEM- 1

1. Disha Gupta was a 22-year-old girl from Delhi. Disha wanted to pursue her acting career
therefore she moved to Mumbai. Disha was alone in the new city and had no friends or
financial support from her family, because family opposed her move to Mumbai. She
auditioned for a number of projects but faced rejections in all. Frustrated by her failures,
she tried to commit suicide twice but was unsuccessful in her attempts.
2. In September 2018, she decided to attend a party graced by a number of Bollywood stars
and industry bigwigs, in the hope of meeting a few directors. There she met Amar Sharma,
one of the most renowned film directors of contemporary times. At the age of 40, Amar had
already directed numerous super hit movies and was known as the ‘career builder’ for
young actresses. Disha and Amar got talking at the bar and eventually exchanged numbers.
They talked and met frequently for a few months post which Disha confessed her love for
Amar and moved into his house. Amar was in a relationship with Disha after three failed
marriages.
3. The Media Agencies posted the latest updates about ‘the newest couple in B town’. Blind
items also began circulating on social media about Disha using Amar to get into the film
industry. The constant media scrutiny and trolling on social media made Disha vulnerable.
Her parents and friends too boycotted her, citing embarrassment over her actions. All this
took a toll on Disha and she pleaded Amar to cast her in his upcoming dream project soon
so that she could showcase her talent. Amar had already casted the actors and invested huge
amount in his dream project but Disha’s constant pleading along with her negative publicity
in the industry adversely affected Amar to such an extent that he could not focus on his
project which gave a huge career set back to him. The fights between the two increased day
by day.
4. Three months later, Amar demanded Disha to leave his house. He claimed that girls like her
come begging to him every day and he can get anyone he wishes. Disha begged him not to
force her to leave the house and promised that she would stop nudging him. She told Amar
that she was not in a fit state of mind and would like to seek medical help for the same. Amar
immediately dismissed her idea, telling her that if the Media Agencies found out about her
psychiatrist visits, they would label her crazy and she could effectively bid goodbye to her
career then. He advised her to rest at home and meditate instead. The relationship between
the two continued to worsen and Disha had socially withdrawn, confining herself to the
house, whereas Amar was still socially active and was seen cosying up to young women at
parties. In November 2019, a picture of him and a young debutante actress, holidaying at a
secluded island in the Maldives, went viral on social media and got the rumour mills
churning about his separation with Disha. A week later, he released a statement, clarifying
that ‘all is well’ between them and that they were one in their heart and soul.
5. On 5th February 2020, at around 2 am, a call was received at Shivajinagar Police station
stating that a woman with 75% burn injuries was brought to their hospital. The police
rushed to the hospital where the victim was identified as Disha. Post regaining
consciousness after a week, she gave a statement to the Police. According to her, on that
fateful night, Amar returned home from a party, visibly inebriated. Upon unlocking the door,
 he saw Disha standing near the stove, holding a can of a blue coloured liquid. He
immediately realized that the liquid was kerosene and he rushed towards her, fuming with
rage. He called her crazy and said that she had ruined all the fun in his life. He attempted to
kill her by pouring kerosene on her exclaiming that if she was so firm on ending her life, he
would make things easier for her. Immediately after Amar threw kerosene on her, she was
soon engulfed in flames as her dress caught fire from the stove right behind her.
6. She said that over the past year, he denied her psychiatric help and mentally manipulated
her while cheating on her with several other girls. Disha went on to state that both of them
had gotten married at a small temple near Mumbai in October 2019 and Amar had also
gifted her a flat in Bandra as her ‘wedding gift’. However, Amar was adamant that they do
not reveal the factum of their marriage to anyone as it would affect their careers. It was only
last month when she found out that Amar’s divorce proceedings with his previous wife were
still pending before the court. Based on her statement, the Police filed charges under Section
307 and Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 against Amar.
7. During the course of the trial at Sessions Court, Mumbai, Amar denied all charges of cruelty
and claimed that he could not be held liable under Section 498A as he was not the victim’s
‘husband’ as contemplated under the section. He stated that there was no valid marriage
between him and Disha. The fact that his previous divorce proceedings were sub judice was
never hidden and was reported in a number of newspapers as well. His act of merely putting
sindoor and mangalsutra on Disha at the temple, upon her persistence, could not be
construed as ‘marriage’ as it was only done for Disha’s happiness. With respect to the charge
of attempt to murder, Amar claimed that when he entered the room on that fateful night
and saw Disha ending her life yet again, he was in a state of utter shock. He admitted that in
a fit of uncontrollable rage, he did pour the kerosene on her but never intended to kill her.
He was unaware that the stove behind was lit which actually led to Disha’s clothes
accidentally catching fire and before he could react, she was completely engulfed in flames.
8. The Sessions Court rejected Amar’s plea that the incident was a mere unfortunate accident
and convicted him U/s 307 of IPC for attempting to murder Disha. The court also held that
a person who enters into a relationship in the nature of marriage cannot be allowed to take
the plea that he cannot be held liable U/s 498A of IPC as there was no valid marriage;
thereby convicting him U/s 498A of IPC for subjecting her to cruelty over the course of their
relationship. He was sentenced to 10 years rigorous imprisonment. Aggrieved by the
conviction, Amar appealed against the order of the Sessions Court before the Hon’ble High
Court of Bombay.
The appeal has two substantial issues:
a) Whether Amar can be held liable U/s 498 A of IPC?
b) Whether Amar can be held liable U/s 307 of IPC?

*The Deadline for Memorial Submission will be: on 24/09/2022 till 3:00 PM.
*Every student is required to submit the memorial for both the sides (Appellant as well as
Respondent).
* No late submissions will be entertained under any circumstances. Kindly adhere to the
deadlines.