Introduction

• A landmark judgement, where a comparison of Section 299(b) and Section 300 (3) of the Indian Penal Code,1860 (IPC) was drawn.
  • The court looked over the intention of the accused behind the act.

Facts

• A person named Bachan Singh, the son of deceased, caused a severe injury on the leg of Pritam Singh, son of the appellant, resulting in the amputation of his leg.
• Seeking the revenge of the aforementioned incident, Kapur Singh, the appellant, encountered the deceased and his companion Chandan Singh on 30th September 1952.
• While Chandan Singh restrained the deceased, the appellant inflicted 18 injuries on the deceased's arms and legs using a gandasa, leading to his death.
• Following the incident, the appellant went into hiding, and Chandan Singh was arrested.
• Subsequently, both were convicted under Section 302 of IPC, and the Sessions Judge sentenced them to death, a decision confirmed by the High Court.

Issues Involved

• Whether the appellant had intention to kill the deceased as under Section 300 of IPC and if not, then under what clause of Section 299 IPC does the offence fall?

Observations

• The Court noted that the accused's motivation for committing the crime was to exact revenge on Bachan Singh's family.
• Specifically, the accused aimed to cause injuries to the arms and legs of the deceased, seeking vengeance for his son.
• Despite the severity of the inflicted injuries, none targeted vital body parts, indicating the accused's intention was not outright murder.
• The injuries, while not intended to directly kill, were of a nature and quantity that could reasonably lead to death.
• The Court, drawing a distinction between Sections 299 and 300 of the IPC, based its decision on the absence of the accused's intention to cause death, focusing on causing severe harm to the limbs.

Conclusion

• The court held that the proper section under which the accused should have been convicted is Section 304(1) IPC and not Section 302 IPC.
• The court thus, finally held that instead of the death sentence which has been awarded to the accused by the High Court the sentence for transportation of life is to be awarded.