INFANCY
Am I audible and visible maam? My I start?
So, my topic is infancy.
First of all, lets understand that for any crime to exist, it needs to consist of both; mens rea
i.e. guilty mind and actus rea i.e. guilty act. A crime will not be complete if either one of the
two essential components are missing.
The criminal law covers various punishments for offences which vary from case to case. But
it is not always necessary that a person gets punished for a crime which he/she had
committed. The Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860 recognized certain defenses in Chapter IV
under "General Exceptions." Some common defenses of criminal law, such as insanity,
infancy and intoxication are based on the defendant's lack of capacity to be held legally
responsible.
Infancy is a legal incapacity to be held responsible for a crime due to the age of the
perpetrator. There is a legal incapacity for the crime under seven years of age.
Doli Incapaxis a presumption of law which provides that child has no discretion to
distinguish right from wrong, thus criminal intention does not arise. The defense of infancy
was first time raised before the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Gopinath Ghosh V. State of West
Bengal. The Sections 82 and 83 of Indian Penal Code deals with the criminal liability under
infancy.
Section 82 states that nothing is an offence which is done by a child under seven years of
age.
Section 83 states that nothing is an offence which is done by a child above seven years of
age and under twelve, who has not attained sufficient maturity of understanding to judge of
the nature and consequences of his conduct on that occasion.
The essential ingredients of Sections 82 and 83 are that children under seven years of age
are incapable of committing a crime and cannot be guilty of any offence.
In Krishna Bhagwan V. State of Bihar, Patna High Court upheld that if a child who is accused
of an offence during the trial, has attained the age of seven years or at the time of decision
the child has attained the age of seven years can be convicted if he has the understanding
and knowledge of the offence committed by him.
The burden of proof to avail this exception under the IPC lies on the accused or the
defendant. The accused needs to prove there existed no mens rea or in this case infancy.
S.105 of the Indian Evidence Act further provides a foundation and states that if any person
who wants to avail the exceptions under Chapter IV, they must prove that their case falls
within the ambit.
