Chapter XVI
OF OFFENCES AFFECTING THE HUMAN BODY
Of offences affecting life
Section – 299 – 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.
Explanation 1 – A person who causes bodily injury to another who is labouring under a disorder, disease or bodily infirmity, and thereby accelerates the death of that other, shall be deemed to have caused his death.
Explanation 2 -Where death is caused by bodily injury, the person who causes such bodily injury shall be deemed to have caused the death, although by resorting to proper remedies and skilful treatment the death might have been prevented.
Explanation 3 – The causing of the death of a child in the mother’s womb is not homicide. But it may amount to culpable homicide to cause the death of a living child, if any part of that child has been brought forth, though the child may not have breathed or been completely born.
Summary
Homicide means killing of a human being by a human being. All murder is a culpable homicide but all culpable homicide is not murder. Where the probability of death is low culpable homicide will attract whereas where probability of death is high murder will attract. This section define and explain as to when an act of causing death constitute culpable homicide. Causing of death must be of a living man, woman, child and at least partially an infant under delivery or just delivered.
Culpable homicide may broadly be classified into two classes:-
(i) Culpable homicide amount to murder (Section – 300 of IPC)
(ii) Culpable homicide not amount to murder (Exception 1 to 5 of the Section 300 of IPC)
Essential Elements of Culpable Homicide –
The important elements are:-
(a) Causing of death
(b) by doing an act,
(c) the act of causing death must be done:-
(i) with the intention of causing death,
(ii) with the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death or
(iii) with the knowledge that such act is likely to cause death.
An act may cause death of a person but it will not be a culpable homicide unless the above conditions are satisfied.
Three things should be kept in mind in culpable homicide:-
(1) Nature of injury
(2) Types of weapons used
(3) Part of body where injury has been caused.
There should be direct connection between act and death.
Related Article:-
Chapter XVI (Section 300) of The Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860
Chapter XVI (Section – 304) of The Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860