4. Stages in Commission of Crime

STAGES IN COMMISSION OF CRIME If a person commits a crime after preparation the doing of it involves four stages. In every crime, there is first intention to commit it, secondly, preparation to commit it, thirdly, attempt to commit it and fourthly, the accomplishment. The stages can be explained as under: 1. Intention 2. Preparation 3. Attempt 4. Accomplishment

INTENTION: Discussed above. PREPARATION: The second stage of commission of a crime is preparation. The term preparation has not been defined in the Code. This means devising means always necessary for the commission of crime. Preparation consists of arranging or building things that are needed to commit the crime. At this stage, the intention to cause harm starts manifesting itself in the form of physical actions, it is however possible for the person to abandon his course of action without causing any harm to anyone. Generally speaking, a preparation to commit a crime is not punishable. In most cases the prosecution has failed to prove the question of preparation for the commission of the particular crime. For eg; buying match-box and kerosene oil to burn a house, alone, cannot be determined as an offence. Illustration: If A purchases a pistol and keeps the same in his pocket duly loaded in order to kill his bitter enemy B, but does nothing more. A has not committed any offence because he is still in the phase of preparation and it will be impossible to prove that A was carrying the loaded pistol only for the purpose of killing B. However certain preparations are punishable, the following are the example of the same:

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2

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Preparation to wage war against the government1

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Preparation to commit depredation on terrorists of a power at peace with the Government of India2

Section 122 IPC Section 126 IPC

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Preparation to commit robbery or dacoity3

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Possessing counterfeit coins4, government stamps5, false weights or measurements and forged documents. Mere possession of these is a crime and no possessor can plead that he is still at the stage of preparation.

These preparations are such which totally preclude any person committing them and therefore, such preparations are punished. Criminal liability in these cases starts right from the stage of preparation. ATTEMPT: The third stage of commission of an offence is the attempt. An attempt can be treated as a direct movement towards the commission of the offence after the preparation have been made. According to Sir Stephen, an attempt to commit a crime is an act which could constitute the offence if it were not interrupted. Once a criminal act reaches the stage of attempt the liability starts, as attempt takes the person closer to a successful commission of an offence. The term attempt has not been defined under the Code, but there are four ways in which attempt has been dealt with: 

The commission of an offence and the attempt of the same have been dealt with in the same section, the extent of punishment being same for the attempt and the commission. There are twenty seven such sections in the code which are: 121, 124, 124A, 125, 130, 131, 152, 153A, 161, 162, 163,165, 196, 198, 200, 213, 239, 240, 241, 251, 385,387, 389, 391, 397, 398 and 460.

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The commission of the specific offence and the attempt of the same have been dealt with separately and separate punishments have been provided for the same. Eg. Murder has been dealt with under section 302 and attempt has been dealt with under section 307; culpable homicide has been dealt with under section 304 and the attempt of the same has been dealt with under section 308.

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Attempt to commit suicide has been made punishable under section 309.

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Attempt to commit offences except those falling in the above mentioned categories are punishable under section 511.

DIFFERENEC BETWEEN ATTEMPT AND PREPARATION: 3

Section 399 IPC

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Section 235 IPC

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Sections 255 and 257 IPC

Attempt to commit crime is punishable, whereas preparation is not as discussed above. This is because preparation would generally be a harmless act, e.g. attempt to commit murder creates a disturbance in the society and the sense of insecurity in an individual, while preparation may not create alarm in society. According to Indian penal Code an “attempt” is a continuous proceeding which at one stage assumes criminal character. In Sudhir kumar Mukharjee v. State of W.B6, Supreme Court held that, attempt to commit an offence begins when the preparation are complete and the culprit commences to do something with the intention of committing the offence and which is a step forward toward the commission of the offence. In Abhyanand Mishra v. State of Bihar7, Supreme Court held that, the movement culprit commences to do an act with the necessary intention, he commences his attempt to commit an offence. Such an act need not be the penultimate act towards the commission of that offence but must be an act during the course of committing that offence. There are four tests that can distinguish between the preparation & attempt clearly. They are Last Step Test or Proximity Rule: As per this test, anything short of last step is preparation and not attempt. This is because as long as there is a step remaining for completion of the crime, the person can abandon it. For example, A obtains poison to kill B and mixes it with food that B is supposed to eat. But he has not yet given the food to B. Thus, it is still preparation. As soon as he keeps the food on the table from where B eats everyday, the last step is done and it becomes an attempt. In the case of R vs Riyasat Ali 1881, the accused gave orders to print forms that looked like they were from Bengal Coal Company. He proofread the samples two times and gave orders for correction as well so that they would appear exactly as forms of the said company. At this time he was arrested for attempt to make false document under section 464. However, it was held that it was not an attempt because the name of the company and the seal were not put on the forms and until that was done, the forgery would not be complete. Indispensable Element Test or Theory of Impossibility: As per this test, all of indispensable elements must be present to equal attempt. For example, a person has the gun to kill but he forgot the bullets. In this case, it would not be an attempt. Further, he goes to place where victim should be but is not then he is not guilty of attempt under this test. In other words, if there is something a person needs to commit the crime but it is not present, then there is not an attempt. This test has generated a lot of controversy ever since it was laid in the case of Queen vs Collins, where it was held that a pickpocket was not guilty of attempt even when he put his hand into the pocket of someone with an intention to steal but did not find anything. However, these cases were overruled in R vs King, where the accused was convicted for

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(1974) 3 SCC 357

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AIR 1961 SC 1698

attempting to steal from the hand bag of a woman although there was nothing in the bag. Illustration (b) of section 511 is based on this decision. But For Interruption Test: If the action proves that the person would have gone through with the plan if not for the interruption such as arrest, then it is an attempt. For example, a person points a gun at another and is about to pull the trigger. He is overpowered and was stopped from pulling the trigger. This shows that if he had not been interrupted, he would have committed the crime and he is thus guilty of attempt even though the last step of the crime has not be performed. Unequivocality Test or on the job Theory: If a person does something that shows his commitment to follow through and commit the crime then it is an attempt. In the case of State of Maharashtra vs Mohd. Yakub8, three persons were found with a truck loaded with silver near the sea dock. Further, the sound of engine of a mechanized boat was heard from a nearby creek. They were convicted of attempting to smuggle silver. J Sarkaria observed that what constitutes an attempt is a mixed question of law and the facts of a case. Attempt is done when the culprit takes deliberate and overt steps that show an unequivocal intention to commit the offence even if the step is not the penultimate one. COMMISSION: The last stage of the crime is COMMISSION. In this stage the crime done. This is the final stage of crime wherein the crime is done. In this stage in case the accused is successful in completing the same he shall be punishable for the commission of the crime. Egs: A steals B’s watch, as soon as he picks up the watch the theft is committed. A fires a gun shot in order to kill his enemy B and as a result of the gunshot B dies in that case the crime of murder has been committed.

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1980 SCR (2) 1158