Offences affecting life
Culpable homicide
299.  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.
Illustrations
     (a)  A lays sticks and turf over a pit, with the intention of thereby causing death, or with the knowledge that death is likely to be thereby caused. Z, believing the ground to be firm, treads on it, falls in and is killed. A has committed the offence of culpable homicide.
     (b)  A knows Z to be behind a bush. B does not know it. A, intending to cause, or knowing it to be likely to cause Z’s death, induces B to fire at the bush. B fires and kills Z. Here B may be guilty of no offence; but A has committed the offence of culpable homicide.
     (c)  [Deleted by Act 51 of 2007]
     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.
[Indian PC 1860, s. 299]
Murder
300.  Except in the cases hereinafter excepted culpable homicide is murder —
(a)if the act by which the death is caused is done with the intention of causing death;
(b)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;
(c)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; or
(d)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.
Illustrations
     (a)  A shoots Z with the intention of killing him. Z dies in consequence. A commits murder.
     (b)  A, knowing that Z is labouring under such a disease that a blow is likely to cause his death, strikes him with the intention of causing bodily injury. Z dies in consequence of the blow. A is guilty of murder, although the blow might not have been sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause the death of a person in a sound state of health. But if A, not knowing that Z is labouring under any disease, gives him such a blow as would not in the ordinary course of nature kill a person in a sound state of health, here A, although he may intend to cause bodily injury, is not guilty of murder, if he did not intend to cause death, or such bodily injury as in the ordinary course of nature would cause death.
     (c)  A intentionally gives Z a knife-cut or club-wound sufficient to cause the death of a man in the ordinary course of nature. Z dies in consequence. Here A is guilty of murder, although he may not have intended to cause Z’s death.
     (d)  A, without any excuse, fires a loaded cannon into a crowd of persons and kills one of them. A is guilty of murder, although he may not have had a premeditated design to kill any particular individual.
[51/2007]
When culpable homicide is not murder
     Exception 1.—Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender whilst deprived of the power of self-control by grave and sudden provocation, causes the death of the person who gave the provocation, or causes the death of any other person by mistake or accident.
     The above exception is subject to the following provisos:
(a)that the provocation is not sought or voluntarily provoked by the offender as an excuse for killing or doing harm to any person;
(b)that the provocation is not given by anything done in obedience to the law, or by a public servant in the lawful exercise of the powers of such public servant;
(c)that the provocation is not given by anything done in the lawful exercise of the right of private defence.
     Explanation.—Whether the provocation was grave and sudden enough to prevent the offence from amounting to murder is a question of fact.
Illustrations
     (a)  A, under the influence of passion excited by a provocation given by Z, intentionally kills Y, Z’s child. This is murder, inasmuch as the provocation was not given by the child, and the death of the child was not caused by accident or misfortune in doing an act caused by the provocation.
     (b)  Y gives grave and sudden provocation to A. A, on this provocation, fires a pistol at Y, neither intending nor knowing himself to be likely to kill Z, who is near him, but out of sight. A kills Z. Here A has not committed murder but merely culpable homicide.
     (c)  A is lawfully arrested by Z, a police officer. A is excited to sudden and violent passion by the arrest, and kills Z. This is murder, inasmuch as the provocation was given by a thing done by a public servant in the exercise of his powers.
     (d)  A appears as a witness before Z, a Magistrate. Z says that he does not believe a word of A’s deposition, and that A has perjured himself. A is moved to sudden passion by these words, and kills Z. This is murder.
     (e)  A attempts to pull Z’s nose. Z, in the exercise of the right of private defence, lays hold of A to prevent him from doing so. A is moved to sudden and violent passion in consequence, and kills Z. This is murder, inasmuch as the provocation was given by a thing done in the exercise of the right of private defence.
     (f)  Z strikes B. B is by this provocation excited to violent rage. A, a bystander, intending to take advantage of B’s rage, and to cause him to kill Z, puts a knife into B’s hand for that purpose. B kills Z with the knife. Here B may have committed only culpable homicide, but A is guilty of murder.
[51/2007]
     Exception 2.—Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender, in the exercise in good faith of the right of private defence of person or property, exceeds the power given to him by law, and causes the death of the person against whom he is exercising such right of defence, without premeditation and without any intention of doing more harm than is necessary for the purpose of such defence.
Illustration
     [Deleted by Act 51 of 2007]
     Exception 3.—Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender, being a public servant, or aiding a public servant acting for the advancement of public justice, exceeds the powers given to him by law, and causes death by doing an act which he, in good faith, believes to be lawful and necessary for the due discharge of his duty as such public servant, and without ill-will towards the person whose death is caused.
     Exception 4.—Culpable homicide is not murder if it is committed without premeditation in a sudden fight in the heat of passion upon a sudden quarrel, and without the offender having taken undue advantage or acted in a cruel or unusual manner.
     Explanation.—It is immaterial in such cases which party offers the provocation or commits the first assault.
     Exception 5.—Culpable homicide is not murder when the person whose death is caused, being above the age of 18 years, suffers death or takes the risk of death with his own consent.
Illustration
     A, by instigation, voluntarily causes Z, a person under 18 years of age, to commit suicide. Here, on account of Z’s youth, he was incapable of giving consent to his own death. A has therefore abetted murder.
     Exception 6.—Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender being a woman voluntarily causes the death of her child being a child under the age of 12 months, and at the time of the offence the balance of her mind was disturbed by reason of her not having fully recovered from the effect of giving birth to the child or by reason of the effect of lactation consequent upon the birth of the child.
     Exception 7.—Culpable homicide is not murder if the offender was suffering from such abnormality of mind (whether arising from a condition of arrested or retarded development of mind or any inherent causes or induced by disease or injury) as substantially impaired his mental responsibility for his acts and omissions in causing the death or being a party to causing the death.
[Indian PC 1860, s. 300]
Culpable homicide by causing the death of a person other than the person whose death was intended
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.
[Indian PC 1860, s. 301]
Punishment for murder
302.—(1)  Whoever commits murder within the meaning of section 300(a) shall be punished with death.
(2)  Whoever commits murder within the meaning of section 300(b), (c) or (d) shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life and shall, if he is not punished with death, also be liable to caning.
[Act 32 of 2012 wef 01/01/2013]
Punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder
*304.   Whoever commits culpable homicide not amounting to murder shall —
(a)if the act by which death is caused is done with the intention of causing death, or of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, be punished with —
(i)imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to caning; or
(ii)imprisonment for a term which may extend to 20 years, and shall also be liable to fine or to caning; or
(b)if the act is done with the knowledge that it is likely to cause death, but without any intention to cause death, or to cause such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years, or with fine, or with caning, or with any combination of such punishments.
[Act 32 of 2012 wef 01/01/2013]
*  There is no section 303.
Causing death by rash or negligent act
304A.  Whoever causes the death of any person by doing any rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide, shall be punished —
(a)in the case of a rash act, with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 5 years, or with fine, or with both; or
(b)in the case of a negligent act, with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years, or with fine, or with both.
[51/2007]
[Indian PC 1860, s. 304A]
Abetment of suicide of child or insane person
305.  If any person under 18 years of age, any insane person, any delirious person, any idiot, or any person in a state of intoxication, commits suicide, whoever abets the commission of such suicide shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years, and shall also be liable to fine.
[Indian PC 1860, s. 305]
Abetment of suicide
306.  If any person commits suicide, whoever abets the commission of such suicide shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years, and shall also be liable to fine.
[Indian PC 1860, s. 306]
Attempt to murder
307.—(1)  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 for a term which may extend to 15 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 imprisonment for a term which may extend to 20 years, and shall also be liable to caning or fine or both.
[62/73; 51/2007]
Illustrations
     (a)  A shoots at Z with intention to kill him, under such circumstances that, if death ensued, A would be guilty of murder. A is liable to punishment under this section.
     (b)  A, with intention of causing the death of a child of tender years, throws the child into a river. A has committed the offence defined by this section, although the death of the child does not ensue.
     (c)  A, intending to murder Z, buys a gun and loads it. A has not yet committed the offence. A fires the gun at Z. He has committed the offence defined in this section; and if by such firing he wounds Z, he is liable to the punishment provided by the latter part of this section.
     (d)  A, intending to murder Z by poison, purchases poison and mixes the same with food which remains in A’s keeping; A has not yet committed the offence defined in this section. A places the food on Z’s table or delivers it to Z’s servants to place it on Z’s table. A has committed the offence defined in this section.
[51/2007]
Other offences by convicts
(2)  When any person offending under this section is under sentence of imprisonment for life, he may, if hurt is caused, be punished with death.
[Indian PC 1860, s. 307]
Attempt to commit culpable homicide
308.  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 culpable homicide not amounting to murder, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 7 years, or with fine, or with both; and if hurt is caused to any person by such act, the offender shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 15 years, or with fine, or with caning, or with any combination of such punishments.
[51/2007]
Illustration
     A, on grave and sudden provocation, fires a pistol at Z, under such circumstances that if he thereby caused death he would be guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. A has committed the offence defined in this section.
[Indian PC 1860, s. 308]
Attempt to commit suicide
309.  Whoever attempts to commit suicide, and does any act towards the commission of such offence, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.
[Indian PC 1860, s. 309]
Infanticide
310.  When any woman by any wilful act or omission causes the death of her child being a child under the age of 12 months, but at the time of the act or omission the balance of her mind was disturbed by reason of her not having fully recovered from the effect of giving birth to the child or by reason of the effect of lactation consequent upon the birth of the child, she shall, notwithstanding that the circumstances were such that but for this section the offence would have amounted to murder, be guilty of the offence of infanticide.
Punishment for infanticide
311.  Whoever commits the offence of infanticide shall be punished at the discretion of the court with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years, and shall also be liable to fine.