Section 84 IPC enacts the McNaghten Rules. A person is exempt from criminal liability where, at the time of the act, he was:
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B.
1. Section 84 IPC reads: 'Nothing is an offence which is done by a person who, at the time of doing it, by reason of unsoundness of mind, is incapable of knowing the nature of the act, or that he is doing what is either wrong or contrary to law.'
2. This embodies the McNaghten Rules (1843) — knowledge of nature, wrong, or illegality.
3. The test is LEGAL insanity, not medical insanity (Hari Singh Gond v. State of M.P.).
4. Irresistible impulse is NOT a recognised defence under Section 84 IPC.
5. Voluntary intoxication is dealt with separately under Section 85-86.
6. Hence option A is correct.
_Source: Indian Penal Code 1860 / Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 / Indian Evidence Act 1872 (Bare Acts, indiacode.nic.in) — IPC, Section 84 (McNaghten Rules); Hari Singh Gond v. State of M.P., (2008) 16 SCC 109_
Related questions
Section 357A CrPC, inserted by the 2009 Amendment Act, provides for:Section 161 IPC criminalises the taking of:Section 320 CrPC deals with compounding of offences. Compoundable offences:Section 122 IEA enacts marital privilege. It provides that:Section 60 IEA enacts the rule that oral evidence must be DIRECT, namely:Section 173 CrPC requires the officer in charge of a police station, on completion of inveSection 156 CrPC empowers the officer in charge of a police station to investigate a cogniSection 268 IPC defines 'public nuisance' as an act which causes: