Meaning And Definition Of Murder
Murder is the unjustified, unexcused killing of one human being by another human being with malice aforethought.
Section 300 defines murder like this: subject to the five exceptions, culpable homicide is murder if the act by which the death is caused is done:
Essential Elements Of Murder Under Section 300
- with the intention of causing death;
- with the intention of causing such bodily injury as the offender knows to be likely to cause death of that particular person;
- with the intention of causing bodily injury to any person, such injury being sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death;
- with the knowledge that the act is so eminently dangerous that it must, in all probability, cause death or such bodily injury as is likely to cause death.
Illustrations Of Murder Under Section 300
Illustration 1: Intention To Kill
A shoots Z with an intention of killing him. Z dies in consequence. A commits murder.
Illustration 2: Bodily Injury Likely To Cause Death
A intentionally gives Z a sword cut that is sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death. Z dies because of the cut. A commits murder even though he had no intention to kill Z.
Illustration 3: Dangerous Act Causing Death
A without any excuse fires a loaded cannon at a crowd. One person dies because of it. A commits murder even though he had no intention of killing that person.
Exceptions: When Murder Becomes Culpable Homicide Not Amounting To Murder
Section 300 also specifies certain situations when the murder is considered culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
| Exception | Description |
|---|---|
| Grave And Sudden Provocation | If the offender does an act that causes death because of grave and sudden provocation by the other. |
| Exceeding Right Of Private Defence | If the offender causes death while exceeding the right to private defence in good faith. |
| Act Of Public Servant | If the offender is a public servant and does an act that he, in good faith, believes to be lawful. |
| Sudden Fight | If the act happens in a sudden fight in the heat of passion. |
| Consent Of The Deceased | If the deceased is above 18 and the death is caused by his own consent. |
Summary Of Section 300 IPC
Under Section 300, culpable homicide becomes murder when the act is committed with intention, knowledge, or bodily injury sufficient to cause death. However, the law also recognises specific exceptions where the offence is treated as culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
Exceptions to Murder
Under criminal law, certain situations reduce the offence of murder to culpable homicide not amounting to murder. These exceptions are recognised when specific legal conditions are fulfilled.
Exception 1 – When Culpable Homicide Is Not Murder
When a person is deprived of the power of self-control and causes death by such a mistake or accident, it shall not amount to murder but rather culpable homicide.
However, this exception is subject to provisos, which include:
- First—There is no voluntary provocation that later on serves the purpose of an excuse for killing or doing harm.
- Secondly. — Such provocation is not due to the act of a public servant, obedience to law or any other lawful exercise of the powers of such a public servant.
- Thirdly. — The provocation is not given by anything done in the lawful exercise of the right of private defence.
Key Points of Exception 1
| Requirement | Description |
|---|---|
| Loss of Self-Control | The accused must have been deprived of self-control. |
| No Voluntary Provocation | The accused should not create provocation intentionally. |
| Lawful Acts Excluded | Provocation arising from lawful acts does not apply. |
Exception II – Exceeding the Right of Private Defence
Exception 2 to the clause deals with those cases wherein the right of private defence of a person is exceeded. If there is an intention that can be clearly made out, the offence constitutes murder; if it is unintentional, it amounts to culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
Culpable homicide will in any case not be murder if the offender exercises more than necessary force for his private defence. In such a case, if death is caused by exercising the same without any scope of time of premeditation to think about the act they are going to commit and there is no intention to do more than necessary harm, the story may be slightly different.
Essential Elements of Exception II
- Exercise of the right of private defence.
- Use of force exceeding lawful limits.
- No premeditation.
- No intention to cause more harm than necessary.
Exception III – Public Servants Exceeding His Powers
This is applicable if the public servant causes death by doing an act which he, in good faith, believes to be lawful and necessary for the due discharge of duty as such public servant; there mustn’t be any ill will involved.
In the case of Dukhi Singh vs State, the appellant, who was a constable of the RFF (Railway Protection Force) while on duty, killed a fireman unintentionally. The constable fired the shots to catch the escaping thief and was therefore entitled to the benefit of this section.
Requirements for Exception III
| Condition | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Good Faith | The act must be done honestly and without malice. |
| Lawful Duty | The act must relate to official duty. |
| No Ill-Will | Personal hatred or revenge must not exist. |
Exception IV — Sudden Fight
Death is caused in a very sudden fight in the heat of passion with no scope for thinking of the consequences of the action thoroughly. In such a case, the fact that a particular party committed the assault first remains immaterial.
Certain essential ingredients that invoke this clause can include the following:
- There must be a sudden fight.
- There must be heat of passion and no proper scope of thought.
- Undue advantage of the offender is taken.
- The offender must not be acting in a cruel or an unusual manner.
- The fight must have been with the person killed.
Important Features of Exception IV
| Feature | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Sudden Fight | The fight must occur unexpectedly. |
| Heat of Passion | The act should happen without calm reflection. |
| No Cruelty | The offender should not act brutally. |
Exception V – Consent
Consensual giving up of life is not permitted by law. The consent may mitigate the punishment ascribed for such an act, but that is all. The offender may not be exonerated on such grounds; further, it shall not constitute murder if the person whose consent is involved is above the age of eighteen years.
Essential Ingredients of This Exception
- Consent;
- By person above age of eighteen years; and
- Consent must be free and voluntary.
Consent should be unconditional and without any reservation. In this case, the accused killed his stepfather, who was an infirm, old and invalid man, with the latter’s consent. It was held that the offence was covered by Exception 5 to Section 300 and punishable under the first part of Section 304.
Summary of Exceptions to Murder
| Exception | Main Principle |
|---|---|
| Exception I | Loss of self-control due to provocation. |
| Exception II | Exceeding the right of private defence. |
| Exception III | Public servant exceeding powers in good faith. |
| Exception IV | Death caused during a sudden fight. |
| Exception V | Consent of a person above eighteen years. |
Case Law on Culpable Homicide and Murder
Augustine Saldanha vs State of Karnataka LJ 2003
The SC deliberated on the difference between culpable homicide and murder. SC observed that in the scheme of the IPC, culpable homicide is the genus and murder its species. All murder is culpable homicide, but not vice versa.
Speaking generally, ‘culpable homicide’ sans ‘special characteristics of murder’ is culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
For the purpose of fixing punishment proportionate to the gravity of the generic offence, the IPC practically recognises three degrees of culpable homicide.
Three Degrees of Culpable Homicide
| Degree | Description | Relevant Provision |
|---|---|---|
| Culpable Homicide of the First Degree | This is the greatest form of culpable homicide, which is defined in Section 300 as ‘murder’. | Section 300 IPC |
| Culpable Homicide of the Second Degree | This is punishable under the first part of Section 304. | Section 304 Part I IPC |
| Culpable Homicide of the Third Degree | This is the lowest type of culpable homicide, and the punishment provided for it is also the lowest among the punishments provided for the three grades. | Section 304 Part II IPC |
Culpable homicide of this degree is punishable under the second part of Section 304.
Conclusion on Murder and Culpable Homicide
Murder, as is defined under Section 300 of the Indian Penal Code, and culpable homicide, as is defined under Section 299 of the Indian Penal Code, are two offences, the distinction between which has been a matter of perplexity to all in the legal fraternity.
The question is when the death of a man is to be treated as culpable homicide or murder.
‘Culpable’ denotes a ‘blameworthy state of mind’, and ‘homicide’ refers to killing a person. Thus, culpable homicide refers to taking the life of another person, where the act has been done with criminal intent.
Difference Between Murder and Culpable Homicide
- Murder is defined under Section 300 of the Indian Penal Code.
- Culpable homicide is defined under Section 299 of the Indian Penal Code.
- All murder is culpable homicide, but all culpable homicide is not murder.
- The distinction mainly depends upon the intention and knowledge of the accused.
- The difference lies merely in the term “intention to commit murder”.
