Criminalization of Attempt to Suicide
CRIMES REASEARCH PAPER
Criminalization of Attempt to Suicide
Nishant Jain
Section C
Introduction
Whoever attempts to end his life but unfortunately fails to end it is liable for punishment. The offence is punishable under Section 309 of Indian Penal Code, a self contained section prescribing punishment.
Section 309 of the Indian Penal Code reads as:
“Whoever attempts to commit suicide and does any act towards the commission of such offence shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year or with fine or with both.”
Suicide
The term Suicide is not defined in the Indian Penal Code. Clift v Schwabe gives an apt definition of the term “to ‘commit suicide’ is for a person voluntarily do an act (or, as it is submitted, to refrain from taking bodily sustenance), for the purpose of destroying his own life, being conscious of that probable consequence, and having, at the time, ‘sufficient mind to will the destruction of life.” According to this definition intention is the essential ingredient. An act is intentional if it exists in idea before it exists in fact, the idea realising in itself is the fact because of the desire it is accompanied with. While, there is no punishment for the completed act but the law makes sure that the individuals who are not able to accomplish the act are punishable.
The word suicide literally means “to kill oneself” (Sui-of oneself and Caedre –to kill). In 1968, the World Health Organisation defined suicidal act as the injury with varying degrees of lethal intent. According to this definition it is difficult to determine whether a particular death was suicide since it requires the injuries leading to death to be self inflicted. The “attempt to suicide” terminology is now recommended to be used only to denote events in which there has been a failure of conscious efforts to end life. Such people commit to end their life through suicide but somehow survive.
Historical Background
Since the Middle Ages,
Criminalization of Attempt to Suicide
Nishant Jain
Section C
Introduction
Whoever attempts to end his life but unfortunately fails to end it is liable for punishment. The offence is punishable under Section 309 of Indian Penal Code, a self contained section prescribing punishment.
Section 309 of the Indian Penal Code reads as:
“Whoever attempts to commit suicide and does any act towards the commission of such offence shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year or with fine or with both.”
Suicide
The term Suicide is not defined in the Indian Penal Code. Clift v Schwabe gives an apt definition of the term “to ‘commit suicide’ is for a person voluntarily do an act (or, as it is submitted, to refrain from taking bodily sustenance), for the purpose of destroying his own life, being conscious of that probable consequence, and having, at the time, ‘sufficient mind to will the destruction of life.” According to this definition intention is the essential ingredient. An act is intentional if it exists in idea before it exists in fact, the idea realising in itself is the fact because of the desire it is accompanied with. While, there is no punishment for the completed act but the law makes sure that the individuals who are not able to accomplish the act are punishable.
The word suicide literally means “to kill oneself” (Sui-of oneself and Caedre –to kill). In 1968, the World Health Organisation defined suicidal act as the injury with varying degrees of lethal intent. According to this definition it is difficult to determine whether a particular death was suicide since it requires the injuries leading to death to be self inflicted. The “attempt to suicide” terminology is now recommended to be used only to denote events in which there has been a failure of conscious efforts to end life. Such people commit to end their life through suicide but somehow survive.
Historical Background
Since the Middle Ages,