Criminal Law

Criminal Law – III (2000)
Time : Three Hours                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Maximum Marks : 200

Attempt any FIVE questions.   At least one question should be attempted from each part.  All questions carry equal marks.

Part-I

Q.1  (a)  Mr. Amrik Singh owned an orchard of managoes lying adjacent to a community play-ground.  Most of the fruit from the orchard was being stolen either by children playing cricket or by truck drivers on the highway.  He, thereafter, fenced it with a barbed wire but without any result.  when he felt tired he connected the barbed wire with live electric wire with an intent to protect his fruit.  Next day when children were playing, the ball went off into the orchard after Ramesh hit it for a six.  Satbir Singh, a player on the defending side, went to fetch the ball unmindful of the fact that a live electric wire was attached to the fencing of the orchard.  Fortunately, when he went in electric current in the wire was absent.  However, on his return the current was restored.  So while negotiating his way, he received a electric shock as a result of which he died.
Decide the offence and the correct provision of Law under which Mr. Amrik Singh can be prosecuted.  Support your answer with reasons.
(b)    Ms.  Gurjeet Kaur and Bunty were very close friends during their college days.  The intimacy became so close that they decided to marry each other.  In the meantime, Gurjeet came in contact with Ratinder whose parents were settled in Canada.  She thereafter, refused to marry Bunty and decided to marry Ratinder instead.
Bunty became so dejected that he decided to disfigure the face of Gurjeet before her marriage.  Two days before the marriage when Gurjeet was on her way to a beauty parlour, bunty threw concentrated acid on her face which not only disfigured her face but inflicted burn injuries throughout her body.  Gurjeet was rushed to the hospital where she died a few hours later.
The parents of Gurjeet intend to go to a Court of law against Bunty.  Kindly advise them as a legal adviser.  State the ground on which you as a prosecutor would build your case.  Also cite relevant Court rulings in your favour.
Q.2.  Radhika, a 12-year-old girl, was subjected to teasing by Ashok, a known bad character of the area.  Radhika bore the behaviour of Ashok because of Ashok's notoriety and her abject poverty with no one else than her old parents to support.  Her parents were casual labourers working in a nearby building.  One day, when her parents were out, Ashok entered the house and attempted a forcible sexual intercourse with her.  Ashok threatened her of dire consequences in case she raises the alarm.  When both of them were naked and in compromising position; Radhika"s mother entered the house.  Radhika narrated the whole story to her mother and both of them next morning lodged an FIR at the Police Station.
They contend that Ashok has raped Rudhika, while Ashok argues that Radhika's silence and not injury or any sort of bruises on her body indicate that she had consented to it.
Kindly advise Radhika and her mother regarding the offence (charge), if any, can be made against Ashok.
Will it make any difference if the medical report states that Ashok is physically impotent?
Q.3.  While I was committing theft in K's house he was surprised by L, a tenant of K.  J took to his heels carrying with him the stolen Jewellery.  L chased him and shouted at him but J escaped by entering his house and shutting the door.  L scaled over the wall and jumped into J's house with a view to take back the Jewellery.  L raised a lathi to strike J who forestalled the danger and shot L dead.  J was arrested and put to trial for the murder of L.  J argues that L raised a lathi to strike, there was a reasonable apprehension of grevious hurt and death of L was caused in the exercise of his right of private defence.
State your opinion with support from law and decided cases whether J's action is right and is covered under Right of Private Defence.
Q.4.  M had history of insanity in his family.  His father had died in mental hospital when his brother was also a patient.  One night M picked up his only son and threw him out of the window.  After this he strangled two of his daughters to death and then tried to throttle his wife too.  Her cries brought the neighbours to the spot.  On seeing them, M ran away and by the shortest route reached the police station where he surrendered to the police.
At the trial for murder of M, the defence counsed of M argues that M's family history coupled with following circumstances : (a) the absence of motive (b) the absence of secrecy (c) multiple murders (d) want of prearrangement and (c) want of accomplices as detailed in Lyon's and Modi's Medical Jurisprudence leads to prove that M was suffering not only from paralysis of the will but also from the paralysis of mind.  Kindly decide the case.

Part-II

Q.5.  Over a property dispute between two brothers,  H, the elder brother, strikes L on the head with a stick causing a fracture of the skull.  He is tried on a charge of grievous hurt under Section 325 of IPC before a magistrate of first class.  The Court allows the compounding of the offence, accordingly H and L enter into a compromise and H is acquitted as a result of it under Section 320 of Criminal Procedure Code.  L subsequently died of injury caused by H and, therefore H is placed on trial before a Court of Sessions for an offence under Section 304 of IPC (culpable homicide not amounting an order).
H contends that the trial cannot proceed as it is violative of his fundamental Right guaranteed to him under Article 20(2) of Indian Constitution as well as protection given to him under Section 300(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973.
As an expert in the matter, kindly state your legal opinion so that matter can be taken up accordingly.
Q.6.  X, an accused in a case of robbery and murder, voluntarily makes a confession before a judicial magistrate, who, however, gave him no warning of the consequences of making such confessional statement.  The magistrate made no notes but listened to the accused's version with rapt attention and later dictated a confessional statement to his typist from the notebook of his mind.  Then the accused, X, and the magistrate put their signatures to the typed statement.
In case the case is before you in the capacity of a Sessions Court would you accept it as a valid confession/statement and convict the accused on this evidence alone?
Q.7.  "In every enquiry or trial the proceedings shall be held as expeditiously as possible and in particular when the examination of witnesses has once begun, the same shall be continued from day to day until all witnesses in attendance have been examined, unless the Court finds the adjournment of the same beyond the following day to be necessary for reasons to be recorded."  (Section 309(1) of Cr. P.Code 1973)
In the light of above statement, state concept of "Speedy trial" and its significance.  Authoritative judgments of the Supreme Court of Indian may be quoted to support your answer.

Part-III

Q.8.  Discuss the relevancy of the following facts under the provisions of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872.
(a)  In his trial for murder of B by stabbing after a long chase, A advanced evidence that a week before the alleged murder of B, A had undergone a heart surgery in a Government Hospital.
(b)  The fact testified to by D that soon before the alleged murder by A, C had peeped through the widow and exclaimed "Look A is aiming his gun towards B".
(c)  The fact that B was seen coming out of the house of A distressed and sobbing soon after he ralleged rape by A.
(d)  In A's trial under Section 420, Indian Penal Code, for cheating by falsely representing to B that he was the manager of a Bank and would employ her as a cashier if she deposited with him Rs. 10,000/- evidence is sought ought to be given that A had made similar representations to C and D and obtained Rs. 10,000/- from each of them.
Q.9.  X goes to the Police Station and narrates the facts and circumstances in which he killed his girl friend and her brother.  The police registered a case under Section 302 of Indian Penal Code against X and arrested him.  The FIR has four distinct parts : a) particulars relating to his identity, address etc; (b) particulars relating to motive and preparations; (c) particulars relating to the actual killing; and (d) particulars relating to after killing conduct such as hiding the dead bodies, concealing the knife and his blood stained clothes.
On the basis of this information, the police recovered the dead bodies, knife and blood stained clothes.
X is on trial and the FIR is the only evidence against him.  Decide in the light of the relevant case.
Q.10.  A,B, C and D belonged to the same religious faith and as such had formed a group with the objective of vindicating their honour.
A, the leader, wrote a letter to B, C and D appreciating their resolve to launch a common struggle against injustice and ill-treatment of their "Kaum".  The common struggle plan involved terrorizing the population by engineering a series of bomb blasts and causing disruption by other means.  After the first blast, the police swung into action and arrested many suspects, including A, B, C and D.  The prosecution is particularly interested in adducing the following two facts with the help of Section 10 of the Evidence Act:
i)    Two taped cassettes in which the specific roles assigned to each member of the common struggle is elaborated.
ii)    A personal diary of A in which the story of the group awakening is recorded with a view to be published as a novel.  Discuss.