Hari Singh Gond (2008)
Definition
Indian Supreme Court ruling setting out the four elements for establishing the IPC § 84 (now BNS § 22) defence: mental illness at the time of the act; rendering the accused incapable of knowing; direct causal connection; burden on the accused on balance of probabilities.
- Court
- Indian Supreme Court
- Year
- 2008
- Governs
- IPC Section 84 (now BNS Section 22) insanity defence
- Burden
- On accused, balance of probabilities
Common questions
What does the "direct causal connection" element in this ruling actually require?+
It is not enough to show the accused had a mental illness at the time, the defence must connect that illness directly to an incapacity to know the nature or wrongfulness of the specific act charged.
Why does the burden fall on the accused rather than the prosecution to disprove insanity?+
Indian criminal law presumes sanity, so once the prosecution proves the act, the accused carries the burden of establishing the exception on the lower civil standard of balance of probabilities, rather than the prosecution proving sanity beyond reasonable doubt.
How does this ruling relate to the older M'Naghten framework?+
It essentially restates the M'Naghten cognitive test, incapacity to know the nature or wrongfulness of the act, into a structured four-element test for Indian courts applying the statutory insanity provision.
Related terms
- Appreciation vs Knowledge
- The MPC and Canadian Criminal Code use 'appreciate' rather than 'know,' requiring a deeper, emotionally integrated understanding of the nature or wrongfulness...
- BNS § 22
- India's insanity defence provision in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, replacing IPC § 84: an act is not an offence if done...
- Durham Rule
- The 1954 US Court of Appeals (DC Circuit) product test: an accused is not criminally responsible if the unlawful act was the...
- Guilty but Mentally Ill (GBMI)
- A US verdict alternative introduced in some states from 1975: the defendant is found guilty (and sentenced) but is entitled to psychiatric...
- IDRA 1984
- Insanity Defense Reform Act 1984: US federal legislation passed after John Hinckley's acquittal that eliminated the volitional prong, raised the standard to...
- M'Naghten Rules
- The 1843 English House of Lords formulation providing that a defendant is not criminally responsible if, at the time of the offence,...
- MPC § 4.01 Substantial-Capacity Test
- The American Law Institute's 1962 insanity formulation: a person lacks criminal responsibility if, as a result of mental disease or defect, they...