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SHRI VILE PARLE KELAVANI MANDAL’S

JITENDRA CHAUHAN COLLEGE OF LAW

TITLE – A STUDY OF STAGES IN THE COMMISSION OF

CRIME.

SUBJECT – LAW OF CRIMES

NAME – VAIBHAVI MODI

ROLL NUMBER & DIVISION – 205, D

SUBMITTED TO – PROF. CHHAYA SHAH & POORVA DIGHE

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to several people without whom it
would not be possible to complete this project. Firstly, I would like to thank my Principal, Dr.
Priya J. Shah for providing me with this golden opportunity. Secondly, I would like to thank my
Professors Chhaya Shah & Poorva Dighe. They provided me with their vital support and
guidance because of which I could make this project. This project helped me in finding my
capabilities and also enhance my research skills.

I would also like to express my sincere thanks to my family; it would not have been possible to
finish this project without their support and coordination. Lastly, I would like to thank my
friends who have motivated me and helped me at every stage of making this project in this
limited time frame.
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TABLE OF CONTENT

PAGE
SR. NO TOPIC NO
1 Introduction 4
2 Fundamental Elements of Crime 5
3 Stages of Commission of Crime 7
4 Conclusion 11
5 Bibliography 12
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A STUDY OF STAGES IN THE COMMISSION OF CRIME

INTRODUCTION
Criminal law, the body of law that defines criminal offenses, regulates the apprehension,
charging, and trial of suspected persons, and fixes penalties and modes of treatment applicable to
convicted offenders.
Criminal law is only one of the devices by which organized societies protect the security of
individual interests and ensure the survival of the group. There are, in addition, the standards of
conduct instilled by family, school, and religion; the rules of the office and factory; the
regulations of civil life enforced by ordinary police powers; and the sanctions available through
tort actions. The distinction between criminal law and tort law is difficult to draw with real
precision, but in general one may say that a tort is a private injury whereas a crime is conceived
as an offense against the public, although the actual victim may be an individual.
Criminal law varies according to jurisdiction, and differs from civil law, where emphasis is more
on dispute resolution and victim compensation, rather than on punishment or rehabilitation.
Criminal procedure is a formalized official activity that authenticates the fact of commission of a
crime and authorizes punitive or rehabilitative treatment of the offender.
A criminal offence according to the meaning of crime given in Indian Penal Code is only
committed when an act, which is forbidden by law is done voluntarily by a human being.

Definition of Crime:
Many jurists have defined crime in their own ways some of which are as under:
 Blackstone defined crime as an act committed or omitted in violation of a public law
either forbidding or commanding it.
 Stephen observed a crime is a violation of a right considered in reference to the evil
tendency of such violation as regards the community at large.
 Oxford Dictionary defines crime as an act punishable by law as forbidden by statute or
injurious to the public welfare endangering to the property, health, safety, and moral
welfare of people inclusive of one's self.
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FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENTS OF CRIME

To establish criminal liability, crime can be broken down into elements which a prosecution
must prove beyond a reasonable doubt. There are basically four elements of a crime are as
follows:
1. Person:

Human being must commit wrongful Act to fulfill first element of a crime that means any
non-living thing or animals are not considered in the category of a person or a human
being whereas in ancient times when criminal law was closely dominated by the idea of
ritter bit theory punishment was also inflicted on animals for the injury caused by them.
For Example, if a dog bite anyone he is punished a horse was killed for kicking a man but
in Indian Penal Code if animal cause injury we do not make animal liable but the owner
is held liable for such injury so the first element of crime is human beings who must be
given appropriate punishment and should be under legal obligation to held criminally
liable. ‘Person’ is defined in Section 11 of Indian Penal Code which includes company,
association or body of persons whether incorporated or not. The word person includes
artificial or juridical persons. He is a legal entity created by law which is not a natural
person such as corporation created under state statute. It is a legal entity having a
distinguished identity and legal rights and obligation under the law.

2. Men’s Rea or Guilty Intention

The second element is derived from the famous maxim Actus Non-Facit Reum Nisi Mens
Sit Rea. This maxim is divided into two parts. The first part being Men’s Rea which
means guilty mind and second part being Actus Reus which means guilty act. It means
the guilty intention and guilty Act together constitute a crime. It comes from a maxim
that no person can be punished in a proceeding of criminal nature unless it can be shown
he has a guilty mind. The second element is Men’s rea which can be explained in various
forms a guilty mind; a guilty or wrongful purpose; a criminal intent, guilty knowledge
and willfulness all constitute the same thing that men’s rea.
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Motive and Intention are both aspects in the field of law and justice both are very
important. They are also associated with the purpose of proving or disproving a particular
case or crime Wrong motive with guilty intention is necessary to prove criminal liability.

3. Actus Reus or Illegal Act or Commission

It is the Latin term used to describe a criminal Activity. It is commonly defined as a

criminal activity that was the result of voluntarily bodily movement. This describes a
physical Activity that harms another person or damages property. In other words, due to
guilty or wrongful intention, illegal omission must take place. There are two types of
Actus reus first is commission and the second one is an omission. The commission is as a
criminal activity that was the result of voluntarily body movement. This describes a
physical Activity that harms a person or property. Against human body includes physical
assault, murder, hurt, grievance, hurt etc. & property includes theft, dacoity, extortion etc.
The omission is another form of Actus reus as an Act of criminal negligence. An
omission could be falling to warn others that you have created a dangerous situation, for
e.g., not feeling an infant who has been left in your care or not completing a work-related
task which resulted in an accident.

4. Injury

The fourth requirement of a crime is injury should be caused to another person or to

society at large. According to Section 44 of Indian Penal Code, 1860 the injury is defined
as any harm illegally caused to any person in body, mind, reputation or property by
another person. Elements of crime are a set of facts that must be proven to convict a
defendant of a crime. Criminal elements are sets forth in criminal statutes or cases in
jurisdictions that allow for common law crimes.
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STAGES OF COMMISSION OF CRIME

There are four stages in the commission of an offence:
 Intention to commit an offence;
 Preparation to commit an offence;
 Attempt to commit an offence; and
 The actual commission of the offence.

Intention to commit an offence

Everyone cannot prove malice by looking at the brains of criminals. It is a psychological factor.
It is impossible to know exactly the intention of a person. However, the acts of people and the
context in which they act are often used to clearly indicate the intention of a person. So, it is not
punishable.
But there are some exceptions in which ‘Intention to commit a crime’ are punishable. These
exceptions are:
i. ‘Waging War against the Government’ under Section 121 to 123 of the Indian Penal
Code
ii. ‘Sedition’ under Section 124 A of Indian Penal Code
iii. A mere ‘Assembly of Persons for Committing the Dacoity’ is punishable under Section
402 of Indian Penal Code.
iv. Under section 292 of the Indian Penal Code, criminal liability can be imposed on the
person dealing with selling, hiring, distributing the obscene books.
v. The persons who have been engaged in the ‘Cumimal Conspiracy’ specified under
Section 120 A of Indian Penal Code shall be lable to be punished although he has not
himself commutted the impugned act.

Preparation to commit an offence

Preparation means ‘to arrange the means or measure for intending criminal act’. It is difficult to
prove that the preparation was made for committing an offence.
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For example: ‘A’ buys a knife for the purpose of killing ‘B’ but after some time, his intention to
kill ‘B’ has changed and he used that knife in the kitchen. In this way, we can not be held liable
for arranging means and measure for murder. So, mere preparation is not punishable under IPC.
But there are some exceptions in which mere preparation is punishable in IPC:
i. Preparation to wage war against the Government (Section 122).
ii. Preparation to commit depredation on territories of power at peace with the Government
of India (Section 126).
iii. Making or selling instrument for Counterfeiting of Coins (Section 233 to 235 )
iv. Making or selling instrument for printing Government Stamps (Section 255 and 257)
v. Possessing Counterfeit Coins, False Weight or Measurement and Forged Documents
(Section 242, 243, 259, 266 and 474)
vi. Preparation to commit dacoity (Section 399).

Attempt to commit an offence

Attempts to commit a crime are basically a positive step toward committing the contemplated
crime after preparations have been made. The trail cannot be cancelled. Once an attempt is made,
the perpetrator cannot change his/her mind and return to its original state without committing a
crime. Ingredients of the Attempt are: -
 Guilty intention to commit an offence
 Some act done towards the commitment of the crime
 The act must fall short of the completed offence

There are some grave offences, where attempts are described and specific punishment is
prescribed for them. These provisions are as follows: -
i. The offence of ‘Murder’ is punishable under Section 302 and the offence of ‘Attempt to
Murder’ is punishable under Section 307.
ii. The offence of ‘Culpable Homicide’ is punishable under Section 304 and the offence of
‘Attempt to Commit Culpable Homicide’ is punishable under Section 308.
iii. The offence of ‘Attempt to Commit Suicide’ is punishable under Section 309. In Gian
Kaur v. State of Punjab, (1996), 2 SCC 648) case the Supreme Court has held
constitutional validity of Section 309. In this case, the completed offence is not
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punishable (since offender would be dead) and as such, there is no provision for the o
punishment.
iv. The offence of ‘Robbery’ is punishable under Section 392 and the offence of ‘Attempt to
Commit Robbery’ is punishable Under Section 393 and “f such Attempt is committed by
a person Armed with the Deadly Weapons’, he is liable to be punished under Section
398.
v. The offence of ‘Voluntarily causing Hurt in committing Robbery’ is punishable Under
Section 394 and the offence of ‘Attempt to cause Grievous Hurt in committing the
Robbery’ is punishable Under Section 397.
vi. The offence of ‘Dacoity with Murder’ 1s punishable under Section 396 and the offence of
Dacoity with an ‘Attempt to cause Death’ 1s punishable under Section 397.

Difference between Preparation and Attempt

 Preparation
 Preparation consists in devising or arranging the means or measures for the
commission of the offence.
 After preparation ends, the attempt starts.
 In the preparation stage, the person, still has the time to change his intention, and
to withdraw from the scene of offence.
 A preparation is generally not punished, except under Sees. 122, 126, 399, etc.
 A purchases poison with an intention to kill B. Upto this stage, A is not
punishable.
 It is impossible to show in most of cases that the preparation was directed to a
wrongful end or was done with an evil motive or intention.

 Attempt
 Attempt is the direct movement towards the commission after preparation is
made.
 Attempt begins, where preparation ends.
 In the attempt stage, the person has no such chance, and the person shall be called
as “Accused”.
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 Every attempt to do a criminal act defined in this Code is punishable.

 A mixes the poison in the food which B is going to take; it is an attempt to
commit the offence of murder. A is punishable.
 An attempt is made punishable because every attempt although it fails to achieve
the result, must create alarm, which of itself is an injury and the moral guilt of the
offender is the same as if he had succeeded.

Difference between Intention and Knowledge

 Intention
Intent means cognizant objective or purpose. Thus, a person who commits a criminal act
in which that person's conscious objective or purpose is to involve in the act which the
law prohibits or to bring an unlawful result. An intention is an action or purpose of the
crime. It is divisible into an immediate act and ulterior object. The intention is the result
of motive. It has a higher level of culpability because it is harmful when committed. An
intention is considered as a careful action and effort to break the law and commit the
criminal offence. Intent resides in the field of law where it is defined as the planning and
desire to perform an act. It is present in both criminal law and tort law. For Example a
robber robs a person for himself for money. Here “Robbing” is an “immediate act” and
this immediate act is called “intention”. Intention in criminal law is always bad and evil.
It has a vital role in determining the question of criminal liability. An intention is also
relevant in criminal as well as civil liability.

 Knowledge
Knowledge is defined as a state of mental realization that causes the mind to receive
passive ideas and impressions on it. At this state human mind will be inactive. For
example, if you are driving rash in a busy road, you have the knowledge that it may
causes accident that even led to death. Thus, we can say that knowledge may or may not
lead us to crime. In IPC Section 307, it states about attempt to murder that with intention
or attempt to murder with knowledge. The section mentions that whoever does any act
with such intention or knowledge, and under such circumstances that, if he by that act
caused death, he would be guilty of murder, shall be punished with imprisonment of
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either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to
fine; and if hurt is caused to any person by such act, the offender shall be liable either to
imprisonment for life or to such punishment as is hereinbefore mentioned. Attempts by
life convicts - When any person offending under this section is under sentence of
imprisonment for life, he may, if hurt is caused, be punished with death.

The actual commission of an offence

This is the last stage of crime. At this stage, the offence is committed or is completed i.e. the
accused succeeds his attempt and causes the injury. Finally, at this stage, the accused is held
guilty for the commission of offence and is punished according to the provisions of the Indian
Penal Code.
If an act remains confined to the first two stages there is, in general, no criminal liability. If
intention and preparation were made punishable it would be impossible to prove that the object
of an accused was to commit an offence. It is in the third stage that the liability arises. Whether
the act is in the second stage or it has entered the third stage is a matter of evidence. The actual
commission of the offence leads to criminal liability. If the accused succeeds in his attempt, the
offence is accomplished. If he missed then it is considered as an attempt.

CONCLUSION
Thus it can be concluded that a crime is not just an act or omission which is a standalone
act but there are several stages which are involved in the commission of an offense. Law
does not criminalize all the stages of the crime but it punishes when the offense is
complete.
We have already seen the exceptions where certain acts become offenses and are
punishable under the Indian Penal Code. One needs to keep in mind the thin differences
between the concepts of preparation and attempt, knowledge and intention etc.
The intention is very important in seeing that whether a crime has been committed or not
and one can obviously never ignore the actus reus, but actus reus without the men’s rea is not a
punishable and will not constitute a crime unless the act falls in the exceptions discussed
above.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-3907-stages-in-commission-of-crime.html
2. criminal law | Definition, Types, Examples, & Facts | Britannica
3. Attempt as a Punishable Offence Under Indian Penal Code, 1860 (ipleaders.in)
4. https://blog.ipleaders.in/constituent-elements-of-a-crime/
5. Stages of commission of crime: Intention, preparation, attempt, and (thefactfactor.com)
6. Understanding the Stages of Crime - CLATalogue (lawctopus.com)
7. https://www.shareyouressays.com/knowledge/what-is-the-difference-between-preparation-
and-attempt-explained/115748
8. https://www.pathlegal.in/Difference-Between-Intention-And-Knowledge-In-Murder-Trial-
blog-2231911