not intend to cause death, or such bodily injury as in the ordinary

Culpable Homicide and Murder course of nature would cause death.

(c) A intentionally gives Z a sword-cut or club-wound sufficient to
Definition:- Section.299. Culpable homicide Whoever causes
cause the death of a man in the ordinary course of nature. Z dies in
death by doing an act with the intention of causing death, or with
consequence. Here, A is guilty of murder, although he may not have
the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death,
intended to cause Z's death.
or with the knowledge that he is likely by such act to cause death,
(d) A without any excuse fires a loaded cannon into a crowd of
commits the offence of culpable homicide.
persons and kills one of them. A is guilty of murder, although he may
Illustrations
not have had a premeditated design to kill any particular individual.
(a) A lays sticks and turf over a pit, with the intention of thereby
Exception 1- When culpable homicide is not murder- Culpable
causing death, or with the knowledge that death is likely to be
homicide is not murder if the offender, whilst deprived of the power
thereby caused. Z believing the ground to be firm, treads on it, falls
of self-control by grave and sudden provocation, causes the death of
in and is killed. A has committed the offence of culpable homicide.
the person who gave the provocation or causes the death of any
(b) A knows Z to be behind a bush. B does not know it A, intending
other person by mistake or accident. The above exception is subject
to cause, or knowing it to be likely to cause Z's death, induces B to
to the following provisos:-
fire at the bush. B fires and kills Z. Here B may be guilty of no
First- That the provocation is not sought or voluntarily provoked by
offence; but A has committed the offence of culpable homicide.
the offender as an excuse for killing. or doing harm to any person.
(c) A, by shooting at a fowl with intent to kill and steal it, kills B who
Secondly- That the provocation is not given by anything done in
is behind a bush; A not knowing that he was there. Here, although A
obedience to the law, or by a public servant in the lawful exercise of
was doing an unlawful act, he was not guilty of culpable homicide, as
the powers of such public servant.
he did not intend to kill B, or to cause death by doing an act that he
Thirdly- That the provocation is not given by anything done in the
knew was likely to cause death.
lawful exercise of the right of private defence. Explanation- Whether
Explanation 1- A person who causes bodily injury to another who is
the provocation was grave and sudden enough to prevent the
labouring under a disorder, disease or bodily infirmity, and thereby
offence from amounting to murder is a question of fact.
accelerates the death of that other, shall be deemed to have caused
Illustrations
his death.
(a) A, under the influence of passion excited by a provocation given
Explanation 2- Where death is caused by bodily injury, the person
by Z, intentionally kills. Y, Z's child. This is murder, in as much as the
who causes such bodily injury shall be deemed to have caused the
provocation was not given by the child, and the death of the child
death, although by resorting to proper remedies and skilful
was not caused by accident or misfortune in doing an act caused by
treatment the death might have been prevented.
the provocation.
Explanation 3- The causing. of the death of child in the mother's
(b) Y gives grave and sudden provocation to A. A, on this
womb is not homicide. But it may amount to culpable homicide to
provocation, fires a pistol at Y, neither intending nor knowing
cause the death of a living child, if any part of that child has been
himself to be likely to kill Z, who is near him, but out of sight. A kills
brought forth, though the child may not have breathed or been
Z. Here A has not committed murder, but merely culpable homicide.
completely born.
(c) A is lawfully arrested by Z, a bailiff. A is excited to sudden and
Murder (Sec.300)
violent passion by the arrest, and kills Z. This is murder, in as much
 Except in the cases hereinafter excepted, culpable
as the provocation was given by a thing done by a public servant in
homicide is murder, if the act by which the death is
the exercise of his powers.
caused is done with the intention of causing death, or
(d) A appears as witness before Z, a Magistrate, Z says that he does
 If it is done with the intention of causing such bodily injury
not believe a word of A's deposition, and that A has perjured
as the offender knows to be likely to cause the death of
himself. A is moved to sudden passion by these words, and kills Z.
the person to whom the harm is caused, or-
This is murder.
 If it is done with the intention of causing bodily injury to
any person and the bodily injury intended to be inflicted is
Exception 3- Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender, being
sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death,
a public servant or aiding. a public servant acting for the
or-
advancement of public justice, exceeds the powers given to him by
 If the person committing the act knows that it is so
law, and causes death by doing an act which he, in good faith,
imminently dangerous that it must, in all probability,
believes to be lawful and necessary for the due discharge of his duty
cause death or such bodily injury as is likely to cause
as such public servant and without ill-will towards the person whose
death, and commits such act without any excuse for
death is caused.
incurring the risk of causing death or such injury as
aforesaid.
Exception 4. -Culpable homicide is not murder if it is committed
without premeditation in a sudden fight in the heat of passion upon
Illustrations
a sudden quarrel and without the offender having taken undue
(a) A shoots Z with the intention of killing him. Z dies in
advantage or acted in a cruel or unusual manner. Explanation- It is
consequence. A commits murder.
immaterial in such cases which party offers the provocation or
(b) A, knowing that Z is labouring under such a disease that a blow is
commits the first assault. Exception 5- Culpable homicide is not
likely to cause his death, strikes him with the intention of causing
murder when the person whose death is caused, being above the
bodily injury. Z dies in consequence of the blow. A is guilty of
age of eighteen years, suffers death or takes the risk of death with
murder, although the blow might not have been sufficient in the
his own consent.
ordinary course of nature to cause the death of a person in a sound
Illustration
state of health. But if A, not knowing that Z is labouring under any
A, by instigation, voluntarily causes, Z, a person under eighteen
disease, gives him such a blow as would not in the ordinary course
years of age to commit suicide. Here, on account of Z's youth, he
of nature kill a person in a sound state of health, here A, although he
was incapable of giving consent to his own death; A has therefore
may intend to cause bodily injury, is not guilty of murder, if he did
abetted murder.
Culpable homicide by causing death of person other than person
whose death was intended (Sec.301)If a person, by doing anything
which he intends or knows to be likely to cause death, commits
culpable homicide by causing the death of any person, whose death
he neither intends nor knows himself to be likely to cause, the
culpable homicide committed by the offender is of the description of
which it would have been if he had caused the death of the person
whose death he intended or knew himself to be likely to cause.
Punishment for murder (Sec.302) Whoever commits murder shall
be punished with death, or imprisonment for life, and shall also be
liable to fine.
Case Law.
Basappa 1960 Crlj 1222.(Mys)
Where a person attacked by his enemies on a roof and given a few
cuts with a dangerous weapon and in order to avoid the attack he
jumped from the roof to his death it was held that even if the death
was caused by his own act of jumping the accused were guilty of
murder as jumping was necessitated by their act.
Conclusion:- In Culpable homicide a person is killed and the person
who is responsible for this killing is liable for punishment but in
murder the person is having criminal intention to kill that person but
in culpable homicide intention is not there so for the offence murder
the punishment is more compared to culpable homicide.
SUM
‘A’ Causes ‘B’ to go within a room and locks ‘B’ in, with an
intention to prevent him from proceeding in any direction beyond
the room. What offence has ‘A’ committed.
“A” is committed an offence called Wrongful Confinement.
‘A’ is liable for the punishment under this act he is locked ‘B’ in room
and not allowed to move in any directions so he committed the
offence of Wrongful Confinement under Section 340.