Browse by Stream
QnA
Home
QnA
Go To Your Study Dashboard

Get Answers to all your Questions

header-bg qa
  • Home
  • Law
  • Read the passage and answer the question that follow. Sections 359 to 369 of the Indian Penal Code have made kidnapping and abduction punishable with varying degrees of

Read the passage and answer the question that follow.
Sections 359 to 369 of the Indian Penal Code have made kidnapping and abduction punishable with varying degrees of severity according to the nature and gravity of the offence. The underlying object of enacting these provisions is to secure the personal liberty of citizens, to give legal protection to the children of tender age from being abducted or seduced for improper purposes and to preserve the rights of parents and guardians over their wards for custody or upbringing. The word ‘kidnapping’ has been derived from the word ‘kid’ meaning ‘child’ and ‘napping', 'to steal'. Thus, kidnapping literally means child stealing. And the word kidnapper was originally meant to signify one who stole children and others to provide servants and labourers for the American plantations. Kidnapping under the Code is not confined to child stealing. It has been given a wider connotation as meaning carrying away a human being against his or her consent or the consent of some person legally authorized to accord consent on behalf of such person. The word 'convey' literally means simply going together on a journey, but in popular parlance, it now means carrying a person to his destination. Thus, the offence would not be complete until the person actually reaches not only a foreign territory but to his destination as well. Mere conveying of a person from one place to another is not criminal. That Act becomes criminal if it is conveyed without his consent. A person may be conveyed as such by using force as by inducing him to give his consent by fraud and deception. Similarly, consent loses its essential elements if it is given under fear or duress, in which case it is submission and not consent.  Abduction in common language means the carrying away of a person by fraud or force. According to Section 362 of the Indian Penal Code, abduction takes place when a person by force compels or by any deceitful means induces another person to go from any place. Abduction, pure and simple, is not an offence. It is an auxiliary act not punishable in itself, but when it is accompanied by a certain intention to commit another offence, it per se becomes punishable as an offence. The expression 'deceitful', as used in this provision, is wide enough to include inducing a girl to leave her guardian's house on a pretext. It also implies the use of misrepresentation and fraud by acts or conduct.
Question
Ms. S, is a student of the second year B.Sc., an adult with a sound mind. The accused was her neighbour and they became friendly with each other. On October 1, Ms. S left her father's house and telephoned the accused to meet her in his car at a certain place. She went to that place and found the accused waiting in the car. The accused took her to certain places and then to the Marriage Registrar's office where they obtained a marriage certificate. Thereafter, both remained as husband and wife.
As a Court of competent jurisdiction, determine the criminal liability of the accused as per the provisions of the Indian Penal Code.

 

 

 

Option: 1

The accused must be prosecuted for kidnapping as Ms S was a minor


Option: 2

The accused is not to be prosecuted for kidnapping as there was no ‘taking away’ of the victim against her wishes by the accused.

 


Option: 3

The accused must be liable for the offence of abduction as the same may take place against a person of any age.

 


Option: 4

The accused must be liable for the offence of abduction as it is a continuing offence and continues.

 


Answers (1)

best_answer

In the case of S. Varadarajan v State of Madras, AIR 1965 SC 942, the High Court convicted the accused of the offence of kidnapping as the kidnapped was a minor when she left her father's house. However, the Supreme Court observed that there is a distinction between the taking and allowing a minor to accompany a person, and the two expressions are not synonymous. Something more has to be shown in a case of this kind. It can be some kind of inducement held out by the accused person or active participation by him in the formation of the intention of the minor to leave the house of the guardian, and thus the accused is not held liable for the offence of kidnapping. The same applies to the facts of the above-mentioned illustration.
 Hence b) is the right answer.

 

Posted by

Suraj Bhandari

View full answer

Similar Questions

Trending Articles/News

anam-khan

CLAT 2025 Admit Card (OUT) Live: NLU CLAT hall ticket at consortiumofnlus.ac.in; how to download
anam-khan

CLAT 2025 admit card out at consortiumofnlus.ac.in; exam pattern, timings
anam-khan

IIULER Goa to admit students through CLAT; joins NLU consortium

Latest Question