What is a Criminal Offence

As per the Indian Penal Code, 1860, when an act forbidden by law is voluntarily done by a
person, it constitutes a criminal offence. An act alone does not amount to guilt and is only
considered as an offence when the performance of such an act is accompanied by a guilty
mind. The legal maxim ‘actus non facit reum, nisi mens sit rea’ means that the two conditions for
penal liability I.e. the guilty act and the guilty mind must be present for an act to be seen as a
criminal offence. The Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, classifies criminal offences into certain
categories such as cognizable, non-cognizable, bailable and non-bailable offences. Different
offences have different procedural treatments under the Indian law.

The criminal offences which are witnessed in legal systems around the world are often
categorised into broad heads on numerous criteria such as procedural characteristics or the
intended victims. By way of this article, we shall attempt to understand these numerous
classifications of criminal offences recognised in law.

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Major categories of criminal offences

The legal systems across the globe recognise numerous acts as criminal offences, however
these offences can be broadly categorised into the following five major categories, namely:
1. Criminal offences against a person:
These are the category of criminal offences which are perpetrated against the body or mental
faculties of a person. Commission of such criminal offences result in either physical injury or
mental harm to its victim. These are often considered grave and can be further classified into
two categories i.e., the subclasses of homicide and other crimes of a violent nature. Some
common examples of crimes against a person include murder, homicide, kidnapping, rape etc.

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2. Criminal offences against property:
Criminal offences which are carried out against the property of another person comprise this
broad category. Although such crimes are primarily perpetrated against the property of another,
they may also result in causing either physical or mental harm or both to a person as a direct
consequence. They are often carried out to interfere with the lawful and peaceful possession of
the property of another person. Some common examples of crimes against property include
theft, robbery etc.
3. Statutory criminal offences:
These include the broad category of offences that are deemed criminal by way of a statute and
often overlap with the other category of crimes. The commission of these offences is specifically
prohibited under special statutes such as those relating to the use of drugs, banned substances
or financial offences. Some common examples of statutory criminal offences include drunk
driving, consumption of drugs etc.

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4. Inchoate criminal offences:
These offences relate to those which were commenced but not completed. This includes acts
such as aiding the commission of a criminal offence or conspiring to perpetrate a criminal
offence. Such acts to be considered criminal offences must include active and substantial steps
by an accused to see through the commission of a criminal offence. The punishment for
inchoate criminal offences can often be as grave as that prescribed for the commission of the
actual criminal offence. These include aiding, abetting, conspiracy and attempt etc.
5. Financial and other criminal offences:
These are offences which are carried out by way of acts such as fraud, deception etc. to
wrongfully obtain financial gain. These are often also referred to as white collar crimes and
include criminal offences such as fraud, embezzlement, tax evasion etc.

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Types of criminal offences under the Code of Criminal Procedure

The code of criminal procedure, which lays down the procedure for trying criminal offences
under the Indian justice delivery system classifies criminal offences into the following categories,
namely:
 Bailable and non-bailable offences;
 Cognizable and non-cognizable offences; and
 Compoundable and non-compoundable offences
1.Bailable offences:
These types of criminal offences are defined in the code of criminal procedure under Section 2
(a), as the offences which are laid down in the first schedule of the code. Bailable offences are
essentially those which are punishable with imprisonment of less than 3 years or with a simple
fine only. Under the code of criminal procedure, bailable offences carry an unfettered right of
bail, therefore a person arrested without a warrant for a bailable offence has an absolute right to
be released on bail, given that such person is willing to pay the bail amount. Pertinently, the bail
amount is fixed by a court of law and grant of bail is conditional upon an accused satisfying this
demand. The code of criminal procedure also provides for the form which has to be filled by an
accused while applying for bail.

Some common examples of bailable offences under the Indian penal code are common hurt,
public nuisance and bribery etc.