Section 299 – Culpable Homicide

Culpable homicide—Whoever causes death by doing an act with the intention of causing
death, or with the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, or
with the knowledge that he is likely by such act to cause death, commits the offence of
culpable homicide.

a. Intention to cause death

 Very difficult and improbable to prove this

 Putting gun on the head and shooting; HEAD HEART AND STOMACH – directly
 But if we inflict a blow not even with the intention of causing death – but that person
is very weak and dies – then how can intention be ascertained? Egg skull theory

b. Intention to cause bodily injury – as is likely to cause death

 OBJECTIVE ENQUIRY- Accused does not know that his injury is likely to cause
death
 Depends entirely on the nature of the injury inflicted
 The blame on the part of the accused is over the moment he has inflicted the bodily
injury – now whether that bodily injury causes death or not would determine whether
or not he would be liable for CH.
 His intention is to cause BODILY INJURY AND NOT DEATH
 The way to prove that whether the bodily injury would or would not cause death
would depend on expertise knowledge
 JUST PROVE THAT HE HAD INTENTION TO CAUSE BODILY INJURY –
AFTER THAT THE BLAME ON ACCUSED IS OVER
 Subjective knowledge of the fact that the injury may cause death  don’t rely. Go for
objective knowledge that he had intention to cause bodily injury.

c.  Knowledge that he is likely by such act to cause death

 Intention does not matter – knowledge is relevant

 Rash and Ordinary driving – Salman Khan Case
 Reasonable man can forsee the likely consequence of his act

Doubt: Likely to cause the death vs. Cause death – from the perpetrators’ perspective
Explain section 299 (c) again
Explanations of section 299?

Partial exceptions: it cannot absolutely absolve you from liability; it would alter your liability

Why are there same ingredients under Section 299 (a) and Section 300 (1)?
 Section 299 (A) – Intention to cause death is proven here – it just gives the definition
and criterion of what constitutes intention to cause death
 Section 300 (1) – this is the convicting provision – if that intention to cause death is
proven then the person is convicted for CH amounting to Murder
Section 300 – Culpable Homicide amounting to Murder

Murder—Except in the cases hereinafter excepted, culpable homicide is murder, if

1. the act by which the death is caused is done with the intention of causing death, or—

2. If it is done with the intention of causing such bodily injury as the offender knows
to be likely to cause the death of the person to whom the harm is caused, or—

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 in the ordinary course of nature to cause
death

4. If the person committing the act knows that it is so imminently dangerous that it
must, in all probability, cause death or such bodily injury as is likely to cause death,
and commits such act without any excuse for incurring the risk of causing death or
such injury as aforesaid

Ingredients of Section 300

a. Intention of causing death – it imposes liability

b. Subjective consideration of the victim – if I know that the person is suffering from a
condition such that his act would lead to an injury which is likely to cause death

In the ordinary condition or with a normal person, it would not cause death but owing to a
persons’ specific conditions, it leads to death, and you know of the same

Intention of causing the bodily injury is there – graver because I know that the victim is
suffering from some medical condition that the bodily injury is likely to cause death

 MOST PROBABLE/ HIGHLY PROBABLE to cause death

e.g., EGG SKULL THEORY

c. Objective consideration – the only thing that matters is whether the bodily injury
inflicted was intended to be inflicted by the accused or not

 The death happens or not in the ORDINARY COURSE would determine whether it is
murder or not
 Death happening in ordinary course would be determined by the experts

d. Imminently dangerous

 In all probability it would cause death

 Certainty and probability is way more than section 299 (c ) – the knowledge here is
way more than section 299 ( c)

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CULPABLE HOMICIDE AND MURDER

300 (2) —If it is done with the intention of causing such bodily injury as the offender knows
to be likely to cause the death of the person to whom the harm is caused

 Intention of causing the bodily injury + knowledge of that injury causing

299(b) - with the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, 

 only intention of causing the bodily injury but there isn’t necessarily knowledge of
likelihood of the act causing the death

Problem Solving Question 1

R vs. Govinda

Problem Solving Question 2

State of AP vs. R Punnaiya

Material Facts: Deceased and accused boarded the same bus – had no weapons on them
Accused picked up heavy weapons – from the coffee shop

19 injuries – 9 were internally grievous

Trial – Section 300 (3) – ordinary course of nature are sufficient to cause death

High Court – Section 299 (c) – knowledge that the act is likely to cause death

Arguments

Accused: common intention under section 34

 By convicting accused of common intention under this section – we are making them
liable for the death
 Common intention was towards inflicting bodily injuries and not towards causing
death
 Making one liable for the injuries that one did not inflict is a misuse of Section 34

Defendant: Injuries which are inflicted are a cumulative result of the 19 injuries which was
proven in the medical reports that such injuries were likely to cause death in the ordinary
course of nature

Q. Why would it be Section 300 (3) and not Section 299 (c )?

Section 299 ( C) – talks about knowledge of the accused that his act would likely cause death

Principle: But here the acts of the accused make it apparent that they had an intention and
not just knowledge.

Intention was there is apparent from the following:

  intention was very clear
 mercilessly beating him
 did not allow anyone to intervene
 the third person intervened and told them that he might die because of his act but that
did not stop them from continuing the acts
 more than 19 injuries

Section 300 (c ) – Ordinary course

From the medical reports

 9 injuries were grievous
 Shock and hemorrhage – in the ordinary course caused death

Section 299b vs. section 300 c

it is the degree of probability of death which determines whether a culpable homicide is of

the gravest, medium or the lowest degree. The word "likely" in cl. (b) of s. 299 conveys the
sense of 'probable' as distinguished from a mere possibility. The words "bodily injury...
sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death" mean that death will be the "most
probable" result of the injury having regard to the ordinary course of nature. 

Section 299 (c) and 300 (4)

Clause (c) of s. 299 and cl. (4) of s. 300 both require knowledge of the probability of the
causing death. It will be sufficient to say that cl. (4) of s. 300 would be applicable where the
knowledge of the offender as to the probability of death of a person or persons in
general--as distinguished from a particular person or persons---being caused from his
imminently dangerous act, approximates to a practical certainty. Such knowledge on the
part of the offender must be of the highest degree of probability, the act having been
committed by the offender without any excuse for incurring the risk of causing death or such
injury as aforesaid.

Section 300 ( 3)

Intention to cause bodily injury: The formidable weapons used by the accused in the
beating, the savage manner of its execution, the helpless state of the unarmed victim, the
intensity of the violence caused, the callous conduct of the accused in persisting in the assault
even against the protest of feeling bystanders--all, viewed against the background of previous
animosity between the parties, irresistibly lead to the conclusion that the in- juries caused by
the accused to the deceased were intention- ally inflicted, and were not accidental.

Sufficient in the ordinary course of nature: a direct causal connection between the act of
the accused and the death was established. The injuries were the direct cause of the death.

injuries of the deceased were cumulatively sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause
death. In her opinion--which we have found to be entirely trustworthy--the cause of the death
was shock and haemorrhage due to the multiple injuries.
Punishments for Culpable Homicide and Murder

Section 302 – Punishment for Murder

Section 299A + Section 300 (1)/ 300( 2)/ 300 (3)/ 300 (4)

Section 304 – Punishment for Culpable Homicide

Section 299 A + 299 B – intention

Imprisonment of life or 10 years+ fine
Section 299 C – knowledge
10 years or fine