Culpable Homicide

Culpable Homicide, Murder
Ans: INTRODUCTION: - Homicide means the killing of a man by man. The homicide
may be lawful or unlawful. Culpable homicide means death through human agency
punishable by law. All murders are culpable homicide but all culpable homicide is not
murder.
There are two classes of culpable homicide:
1. Culpable Homicide Amounting to Murder: It is known as simple murder.

2. Culpable homicide not amounting to Murder: There is necessarily a criminal or
knowledge in both. The difference does not lie in quality; it lies in the quantity or
degree of criminality closed by the act. In murder there is greater intention or
knowledge than in culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
Culpable Homicide not amounting to Murder

To establish culpable Homicide in IPC not amounting to murder, the Indian Penal Code’s
Section 299 defines three crucial elements that need to be proven:
 The intention of causing death.

 The intention of causing bodily injury that is likely to cause death.
 The knowledge that the act is likely to cause death.
Culpable Homicide amounting to Murder
On the other hand, for culpable Homicide amounting to murder, Section 300 of the Indian
Penal Code outlines four essential elements that need to be established:
 The intention of causing death.

 The intention of causing bodily injury to the person, and the offender knows that such injury
is likely to cause the person’s death.
 The bodily injury intended to be inflicted is sufficient, in the ordinary course of nature, to
cause death.
The culpable homicide is defined in sec. 299 of the IPC which is as under:
CULPABLE HOMICIDE UNDER SEC.299 OF IPC

Whoever causes death by doing any act: -
(i) With the intention of causing death
(ii) With the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death.
(iii) With the knowledge that he is likely, by such act, to cause death commits the
offence of culpable homicide.
ILLUSTRATION
‘A’ knows that Z is behind a bush, B does not know it. A, intending to cause or knowing that
is likely to cause Z’s death induces B to fire at the bush. B fires and kills Z. Here B may be
guilty of no offence, but A has committed the offence of culpable homicide. Here are the
explanations of this section which are as under: -
Explanation No. 1: - A person who causes bodily injury to another who is labouring under
disorder decease, or bodily infirmity and thereby accelerates the death of that other, shall be
deemed to have caused his death.
Explanation No. 2: Where death is caused by bodily injury the person who causes such
bodily injury shall be deemed to have caused death, although by resorting to proper remedy
and skilful treatment, the death might have been prevented.
Explanation No. 3: The causing of death of a child in the mother’s womb is not homicide,
but it may amount to culpable homicide to cause the death of a living child if any part of that
child has been brought forth, though the child may not have breathed or been completely
born.
Case Law: Kedar Parsad V/s State 1992: It was held by the court that the first accused
was liable U/s 304 and the other U/s 324 for causing hurt by dangerous weapon & the
third U/s 323 for causing simple hurt only.
Case: - Ghanssham V/s State of Maharashtra 1996: The accused husband stabbed his wife on
chest resulting in her death on her refusal to have sexual intercourse with him. It was held
that the act was done in sheer frustration and anger and so his liability was based on sec.
299(2) of IPC.
Case: Sarabjeet Singh V/s St ate 1994. The accused did not have good relation with
complainant on account of sale transaction of piece of land. He went to the house and
assaulted the complainant and his wife. He also picked up the infant child of the
complainant and threw him down on the ground with force as a result of which the child died
some time later. The accused was held guilty under sec. 304 PartII.
When culpable homicide amounts to murder: According to sec.300 of IPC except the
exceptions culpable homicide is murder, it the act by which death is caused:
1. It is done with the intention of causing death or
2. It is done with the intention of causing such bodily injury as the offender knows that
it is to be likely to cause the death of the person to whom the harm is caused.
3. If it is done with the intention of causing bodily injury to any person and the bodily
injury intended to be inflicted is sufficient ordinary cause of nature to cause death
4. If the person committed the act knows that it is so imminently dangerous that it must
in all probability, cause death or such bodily injury as is like to cause death; and
commits such act without any excuse for incurring death or such injury as said above.
ILLUSTRATION:
A. A shoots Z with intention of killing him, Z dies in consequence, A commits murder.
B. A knowing that Z is labouring under such disease that a blow is likely to cause his
death, strike him with the intention of causing bodily injury, Z dies in consequences of blow.
A is guilty of murder.
C. A intention gives Z a sword cut sufficient to cause the death of a man in the ordinary
course of nature. Z dies in consequences. Here A is guilty of murder although he may not
have intended to cause Z’s death.
D. ‘ A’ without any excuse fires a loaded cannon in to a crowd of persons and kills one
of them. A is guilty of murder although he may not have had a premeditated design to kill
any particular individual.
Cases:- Sridharan Sathesan V/s State of Keral 1995:-
There was a dispute between the accused and the deceased regarding the payment of money.
The accused who was a driver caused serious injuries by his mini bus and hit the deceased
with great speed in the middles portion of the body. Tyre marks were also found on the
thighs of the deceased. It was held that it was an intentional killing and Sec.300 (1) was
applicable.
Case : State V/s Sadanand 1987 :-
Accused caused the first injury on the stomach of the deceased by Rampuri Knife with a
blade of more than six inches long. While the deceased started running away from the place
to save himself, the accused gave another blow by the same knife on his back. The injuries
caused his death. The SC held that the accused was guilty of murder and Sec.300 (3) was
applicable.
Case: - Lakha Singh V/s state of Rajasthan: The accused was held guilty on the basis of
cause (3) of section 300 of IPC.
Case: Dulal Hazara V/s State 1987: The accused tied the mouth and throat and hands of the
deceased causing her death by asphyxiation due to throttling, he was held guilty of murder.
He knew that his act was so imminently dangerous as to cause death probability.
Thus except the exceptions cases culpable homicide is murder, if the circumstances
described above any of the four clauses are present. In other words, only these four classes
of culpable homicide are murder and any other kind of culpable homicide continues to be
culpable homicides and does not become murder.
EXCEPTIONS OR WHEN CULABLE HOMICIDE IS NOT MURDER

Five exceptions have been provided u/s 300 wherein causing death does not amount to
murder. If any of these exceptions is held to be applicable in a case, the conviction of the
accused in that case would be for culpable homicide not amounting to murder. In this sense,
therefore, these five exceptions are partial defences to murder thus following are the
exceptions:-
1. Grave and sudden provocation: Culpable homicide is not murder if the offended,
who deprived of the self control by grave and sudden provocation, causes the
death of a person, who gave the provocation or causes the death of any other
person by mistake or accident. Thus for the first exception following things are
necessary :-
a) There must be provocation.
b) Provocation must be grave and sudden.
c) By reason of such provocation the offender have been deprived of the
power of self control.
d) The death must be of that person who gave the provocation or any other person
by mistake or accident.
ILLUSTRATION: Y gives grave and sudden provocation to A. A on this sudden
provocation fires a pistol at Y, neither intending nor knowing himself to be likely to kill Z
who is near him but out of sight. A kills Z here, A has not committed murder but merely
culpable homicide.
Ajit Singh v/s State l991 : In this case the accused found his wife and a neighbours in a
compromising position and shot both of them dead. It was held that he was acting under
provocation and is liable for sudden provocation.
2. RIGHT OF PRIVATE DEFENCE;- For the application of this exception the
following conditions must be fulfilled :-
A. Act must be done in good health.
B. Act must be done in exercise of the right of private defence of person or property.
C. The person doing the act must have exceeded in his right given to him by law and
thereby caused death.
D. The act must be done without premeditation and without any intention of causing
more harm then was necessary for the purpose of such defence.
ILLUSTRATION:- Z attempts to horsewhip A, not in such a manner as to cause grievous
hurt to A. A draws out a pistol. A believing in good faith that he can by no other mean,
prevent himself from being horsewhipped shoots Z and kills. A has not committed murder
but culpable homicide.
Bahadur Singh v/s State 1993 :The complainant party assaulted the accused person who were
also armed with sharp weapons like Gandasa by the use of which death caused. It was held
they had excluded their right of private defence in good faith and so exception N’s was
available to them.

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Culpable Homicide, Murder

1. Culpable Homicide Amounting to Murder: It is known as simple murder.

Culpable Homicide not amounting to Murder

 The intention of causing death.

 The intention of causing death.

CULPABLE HOMICIDE UNDER SEC.299 OF IPC

EXCEPTIONS OR WHEN CULABLE HOMICIDE IS NOT MURDER

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