( 438 )

[CROWN CASK RESERVED.]

Present: Bertram C.J., De Sampayo J., and Garvin A.J.

T H E K I N G v. RENGASAMY.

3—P. C. Kegalla, 2,522.

Murder committed while in a state of drunkenness—Self-induced intoxica­

tion—Penal Code, ss. 78, 79, and 294—Knowledge—Intention.
In all cases of self-induced intoxication it is a question of fact
for the jury, whether the accused actually entertained the intention
necessary to constitute the crime.
Section 79 is intended to deal with two classes of cases :—
(a) Cases in which knowledge is an essential element of the
crime.
(6) Cases in which intention is an essential element of the crime.
In the first of these cases it imputes to the drunkard the
knowledge of a sober man. In the second of these cases it also
imputes to the drunkard the knowledge of a sober man in so far
as that knowledge is relevant for thejpurpose of determining his
intention.
What is the knowledge referred to ? In the first case it is the
knowledge specified in the Code as the essential element of the
crime. In the Becond case it is the " knowledge of the nature and
consequences of the act." The law does not allow the drunkard
to say that owing to his intoxication he did not know that a
particular stab with a particular instrument would be likely to
cause the death of a human being. But if in fact the degree of
intoxication was such that the man imagined that what he was
striking was not a man but a log, proof of this circumstance would
not be excluded. On the contrary it would be the very strongest
evidence that the man had formed no murderous intention.
Subject to the qualifications above explained, the question
' whether an intoxicated person is guilty of murder depends upon
whether he has formed what I may describe as a murderous
intention. That is a question of fact. For the purpose of
determining that question of fact the jury must attribute to him
the knowledge of the nature and consequences of his act that
would be attributed to a sober man. If they consider that the
degree of intoxication was Buch that he could not have formed a
murderous intention or any intention at all, they must acquit him
of murder and consider the question of culpable homicide. For the
purpose of that question they must attribute to the accused
within the limits above explained the knowledge of a sober man.
The law will not allow the accused to disclaim that knowledge,
and if they come to the conclusion that a sober man in the prisoner's
position would have known that he was likely to by his act to cause
death, they must convict him of culpable homicide. This is
 ( 439 )
subject to the special case dealt with by paragraph " Fourthly " 1924'
of section 294, and also subject to the four exceptions enumerated „ - ~J7T
under the same section. Ren^saVy
Per GARVIN A.J.—The imputation of knowledge authorized by
seotion 79 should be confined to those cases in which knowledge
and intention are specifically stated in the alternative as elements
of an offence.
Paragraph " Fourthly " of section 294 of the Penal Code applies
only to cases in which without any definite intention to injure
a perton deliberately takes the risk of inflicting death. The words,
" without any excuse, &c," are intended to except such cases as
where a military officer lawfully fires upon a mob, or where the
captain of e vessel takes the risks contemplated in section 74.
Apart from this special case and apart from the special excep.
tions enumerated under section 294, culpable homicide, as
distinguished from murder is a question of knowledge; murder
is a question of intention.

T HIS case was referred to a Bench of three Judges under

section 355 of the Criminal Procedure Code by Bertram C.J.
by the following order :—

On May 9, 1924, at the Kandy sessions, one Krishnen Bengasamy

was convicted of murder and sentenced to death. He committed the
crime when in a state of drunkenness. I directed the jury with
reference to the meaning of section 79 of the Penal Code, and I informed
them that in my own opinion the effect of that section was as follows :
namely, that where an act done is not an offence unless done with a
particular knowledge or intention, the law imputes to a man who does
the act in a state of intoxication the knowledge of a sober man. It
does not impute to him any particular intention. It leaves the question
of intention at large. In all such cases it is & question for the jury
whether the degree of the intoxication was such that the accused was
incapable of forming any definite murderous intention. I pointed out
to them that a drunken man is not necessarily incapable of forming an
intention. In some caBes he may be incapable, in other cases he may
not. In a case of murder the law will not allow an offender to ssy
that owing to his intoxication he did not know that the act which he
was committing was likely to cause death. But whether he did from
any particular intention is a question of fact for the jury. It may well
be that he would not have entertained the intention which he in fact
entertained if he had not been drunk. But this merely means that
drunkenness has affected his judgment.
2. In giving this direction to the jury, I assumed that the intention
of section 79 was to declare the law in the same sense as that in which
it was defined by Stephen J . in R. v. Doherty cited in Oour, Penal Law
of India, 2nd ed., p. 514 :—
" Although you cannot take drunkenness as an excuse for crime,
yet when the crime is such that the intention of the party
committing it is one of its constituent elements, you may
look at the fact that the man was in drink -in considering
whether he formed the intention necessary to constitute the
crime. If a sober man takes a pistol, or a knife, and strikes
or shoots at someone else, the inference is that he intended
1
16 Cox C. C. 306.
 ( 440 )
1924. to strike or shoot him with the object of doing him grievouj
—-. bodily harm. If, however, a man acting in that way was
2%« King v. drunk you have to consider the effect of his drunkenness upon
itengaaamy ^ intention, in a distinction of vital importance
c a 8 0 a

occurs. A drunken man may form an intention to kill

another or to do grievous bodily harm to him or he may not;
but if he did form that intention ho is just as much guilty of
murder as if he had been sober."
3 . I told the jury that in my own opinion in view of the repeated
and determined nature of the blows given to the murdered man, and
in view of his immediate observation to a witness, " I have killed one ;
I will kill another " there was ample evidence from which they could
find that the accused in fact had formed a murderous intention.
4. As I understand that one of my predecessors has interpreted
section 7 9 in a different sense, and as I have, from time to time, heard
that some perp'exity is felt as to the real meaning of the section, I
hereby reserve, as a question of law, for the consideration of three
Judges the question whether- my direction to the jury was correct.'
5 . The obscurity of section 7 9 appears to arise from this circumstance
that the case which it proposes is a case where an act is not an offence •
unless done with a particular knowledge or intention, but while it
proceeds to impute a particular knowledge, it 6ays nothing about the
intention. My own suggested explanation of this circumstance is that
in determining whether or not a person had a particular intention,
it may often be material to know what was his knowledge.

Ahbar, A.S.-O. (with him Barber, C.C., and Dias, CO.).—The

English law cannot be applied in this case (see Kachcheri Mudaliyar
v.Mohvrnadu ).1

Under section 78 of the Penal Code a man is not guilty where

he has become intoxicated involuntarily. Section 79 goes on to
speak of voluntary drunkenness. The intoxication contemplated
in section 79 is the same degree of intoxication as that in section 78,
that is to say, intoxication which renders the accused incapable of
knowing the nature of the act, or that he is doing what is either
wrong or contrary to law. The burden of proving that he was so
intoxicated is, of course, on the accused. Once he proves this
intoxication, the effect of section 79 is this. Some of the offences
under the Penal Code require intention, and intention alone—for
example, theft. In such cases intoxication will, as a result of
section 79, negative intention, and therefore one of the elements of
the offence of theft having disappeared, the accused must be
acquitted. It is on this basis that the case reported in 17 N. L. R.
96 was decided.

Then again, there are certain other offences where knowledge alone
is sufficient. The effect of section 79 is that intoxication makes
no difference. For example, if a person is charged with voluntarily
causing hurt as defined in section 312, intoxication will be no
defence, because intoxication will negative intention, but will not

» (1920) 21 N. L. S. 369.
 ( 441 )

negative Knowledge, and, as under section 312 a man m a y have 1984.

either intention or knowledge, the accused will not be able to plead ^ke King v
intoxication as a defence. Rangaaamy
Now, if this test is applied to murder as denned in section 294,
it will be noticed that the definition in section 294 is split up into
four ^groups—the first three dealing with intention and the last
dealing with knowledge. So that, it is submitted, intoxication
will have the same effect as in the case of ordinary hurt, that is to say,
it will negative intention, but it will not negative knowledge, and
the case will fall within the fourth paragraph of section 294, and the
accused will still be guilty of murder.
The result would be the same if we apply section 79 in another
way. Section 79 states that a man who commits an offence which
requires a particular knowledge or intention is liable to be dealt with
as if he had the same knowledge as he would have had if he had not
been intoxicated. That is to say, in this particular case this
accused is liable to be dealt with as if he had the same knowledge
as he would have had if he had not. been intoxicated. I n other
words, he must be presumed to have known all the circumstances of
the case leading up to the death of the' deceased. So that if the
accused had used a lethal weapon being fixed with the knowledge
that he is using this lethal weapon, he mi :t be presumed to have
intended the natural consequences of his act, and therefore he would
still be guilty of the offence of murder.
It was on both these grounds that the Indian Court held in the
case reported in 38 Mad., p. 479, that the accused was guilty of
murder.
The following authorities were also quoted:—Rex v. Beard, 89
'Law Journal (Q:B.) 437; 78 Law Journal (K.B.) 476; Ratanlal,
p. 163; 29 Col. 493 ; Gour, vol. I., p. 506.

Rajaratnam (with him Charles de Silva and Speldewinde).—

Section 78 of the Penal Code refers to cases of advanced intoxica­
tion, where a man is deprived of the consciousness of the moral or
legal character of his acts. Section 79, on the other hand, does not
specify the degree of intoxication, but leaves it to the Court to
determine from the facts of each case whether the accused was
capable of forming the requisite intention. So far as knowledge
of the nature of the act and its consequences is concerned, drunken­
ness makes no difference under this section. I t imputes the
knowledge of a sober man to the accused, however drunk he might
have been at the time he committed the act.
Intention is a conscious and voluntary act of the mind. I t
consists in desiring a particular result "and in formulating to oneself
the physical means by which that result is to be achieved. The
mental decision and the physical act may be momentary, but the
above factors must be present.
 ( 442 )

1984. Knowledge, on the other hand, is a mere passive condition of the

The King v. mind. It may or may not be consciously present in the mind
Rengasamy t the moment the act is done.
a

Intention involves knowledge, and is frequently inferred from it.

In cases where knowledge of the nature of the act and its
consequences is sufficient, drunkenness will afford no excuse. For
example* in the cases contemplated in the fourth paragraph of
section 294 of the Penal Code, such knowledge alone is sufficient
to constitute murder.
This paragraph does not apply to all oases of homicide.
It relates only to cases of extreme rashness and disregard of
human life. Illustration (d) under this section shows what was
intended by the framers of the Code. This is the only class of cases
in which a man may be guilty of murder, even though he might not
have intended the death of his victim. In all other cases intention
is an essential requisite of murder under our Code.
Where knowledge is imputed to the accused as a legal fiction,
in ention should not be argued from it.
1
Counsel referred to Gora Chand Gopie's case ; King-Emperor
8
v. Barkatullah ; King-Emperor v. Uga Tun Bow?

June 2, 1924. BBETRAM C.J.—

The question submitted has proved to be one of great difficulty.

W e are all agreed that the direction to the jury was substantially
right, and that in all cases of self-induced intoxication it is a question
of fact for the jury, whether the accused actually entertained the
intention necessary to constitute the crime. But it has not been
possible to enumerate with confidence any completely satisfactory
explanation of the meaning of the section.
The Solicitor-General has suggested an alternative explanation.
This explanation is, in fact, the theory to which I alluded in the
reference. That theory, as I understand it, is as follows :—
Sections 78 and 79 cover the same ground. By " intoxication "
in section 79 is intended the same degree of intoxication as is
specified in section 78, that is, intoxication so intense as wholly
to obscure in the mind of the drunkard the nature, the morality,
or the criminality of the act done. N o other degree of intoxication
is the subject of any definite enactment of the Code. But with
reference to this degree of intoxication, section 79 lays down a
specific principle for the purpose of certain classes of cases. These
cases are the cases where the law requires a particular knowledge
or intent to constitute the crime. In these cases the law attributes
to the drunkard an artificial state of mind. I t imputes to him a
particular condition of knowledge, but regards him as being devoid
1
5 W. B. 45 * Punjab Record 1887, 32.
8
13 Cr Law Journal 804.
 ( 443 )

of all intention. As the Solicitor-General first put it—it " substi- 1924.
tnes knowledge for intention" : as he afterwards put it " it eliminates BEBTBAM
intention." I t calls upon us to deal with him, as though he had C J.
no intention at all, but only a particular condition of knowledge. TheKingv.
For this imputed condition of knowledge he is criminally responsible, Bengaaamy
and in so far as this condition of knowledge in the circumstances of
the case would constitute a crime, he is liable to be punished, but
not further.
If, however, the degree of intoxication falls short of complete
oblivion of the intellectual, the legal and the moral sense, then
section 79 does not apply. In such circumstances,' even on this
theory, the Solicitor-General agrees that it remains a simple question
of fact for the jury, whether the accused actually entertained the
necessary criminal intention.
The Solicitor-Genera! viewed the theory with frank distaste. As
he expressed it, it requires prosecuting officers to deal with the
human mind as though it was a puzzle. I t has also this particular
result—which seems repugnant to all human justice—that under the
paragraph " Fourthly " in section 294 (as the Solicitor-General
seemed disposed to interpret it) it makes liable to be hanged a man
who had in fact entertained no murderous intention, simply on the
basis of a supposed condition of knowledge, which he had not in fact
possessed, but which the law has artificially imputed to him.
Such is the theory suggested. I t was in the hope of finally
dissipating the mists of this theory that I made this reference to the
Court. I t is a theory which, with all respect to those who are
said to have favoured it, seems to me altogether too artificial to be
tolerable. I cannot believe that either Lord Macaulay or any
reviser of his work can- ever have intended to introduce into India
a legal principle so entirely without precedent or resemblance.
Before I examine this theory in the light of the words of the
section, I should like to deal with the Solicitor-General's reference
to paragraph " Fourthly" of section 294. It is not actually
incumbent upon us to interpret this paragraph, but inasmuch as
this paragraph (the only enactment in the Code in which the death
penalty is attached to knowledge alone) necessarily obtrudes itself
upon our attention, and inasmuch as it will assist us to determine
the problems under consideration if we acquire a clear idea of the
scheme of the Code as regards minder and culpable homicide,
I.think it would be well that we should address ourselves to the
interpretation of this paragraph.
In m y opinion, this paragraph is not an enactment of general
application, but was designed to provide for a particular case, which,
if unprovided for, would have left the Code incomplete. That case
was the case of a man who has no intention to injure anyone in
particular, but who deliberately takes a risk, which may involve the
infliction of death on some person or persons undetermined. A
2g»;
 ( 444 )

1924. typical example of this class of case is that of the man who fires or
BERTRAM charges with a motor car down a crowded street. The object of
C.J. . this provision is very fully discussed in Gour, Penal Law of India,
n d c
TheKingv ^ ^"> ^43-1345. Dr. Gour expresses the opinion that
Rengasamy though the enactment was designed to meet this particular class of
case, its application ought not necessarily to be confined thereto,
and instances the case of a mother exposing her infant child as a
case to which the words of the enactment appropriately extend.
I quite agree. Another case which has recently come within my
own experience, and to which the words of the enactment appro­
priately apply, is that of a man, who without any definite intention
to injure, but out of- pure bravado and insolence discharges a gun
in the direction of a man with whom he is engaged in altercation.
Making allowance for these cases, I am of opinion that the section
applies only to cases in which without any definite intention to
injure, a person deliberately takes the risk of inflicting death. The
words " without any excuse, & c , " are intended to except such cases,
as where a military officer lawfully fires upon a mob, or where the
captain of a vessel takes the risks contemplated in section 74.
In my opinion juries should be told that this enactment should be
confined to that class of cases, and that in ordinary cases it should
be left out of consideration.

If this is not done, the whole scheme of the Code is distorted.

It can never have been intended that juries should be told that
if the act committed is merely dangerous, they should find the
accused guilty of culpable homicide, but that if it was " imminently
dangerous " they should find him guilty of murder, or that if he
knew that the act was " likely to cause death " they should find him
guilty of culpable homicide, but that if he knew that it " must
in all probability cause death " they should find him guilty of
murder.
On the other hand, if the paragraph is eliminated and taken as
applying to a special case, the whole scheme of the Code is clear and
simple. Apart from this special case and apart from the special
exceptions enumerated under section 294, culpable homicide, as
distinguished from murder, is a question of knowledge ; murder is
a question of intention. Knowledge is not necessarily conscious.
A man may know a thing though he may not have it in his mind.
Intention, however, is a conscious act. It is something present
to the mind at or before the moment at which the act intended is
done.
Let us now examine the suggested theory in the light of section
79. I do not agree that the " intoxication " there referred to means
intoxication of the same degree as that defined in section 78. It
covers intoxication of any degree whatever. Nor can I see any­
thing in the section which either " eliminates intention" or
 ( 445 )

'"substitutes knowledge for intention." The section, as I under­ 1924.

stand it, is intended to deal with two classes of cases :— BERTRAM
C.J.
(a) Oases in which knowledge is an essential element of the crime.
(6) Cases in which intention is an essential element of the crime. The King v.
Rengaaamy
In the first of these cases, it imputes to the drunkard the
knowledge of a sober man. In the second of these cases it also
imputes to the drunkard the knowledge of a sober man, in so far as
that knowledge is relevant to his intention. To put the second case
in another way : it often happens that for the purpose of determining
a man's intention, it is material to know his knowledge. In such a
case for this purpose the section attributes to the drunkard the
. knowledge of a sober man.
In both these cases, the state of the accused's knowledge is or
may be relevant—in the first case, directly relevant; in the second
case, indirectly relevant as throwing light on his actual intention.
In both these cases the law imputes to him the knowledge of a sober
man, and does not allow him to disclaim that knowledge.
But what is the " knowledge " which is referred to ? In the first
case, the answer is clear. The knowledge referred to is " a particular
knowledge," that is to say (as the Burma case puts it), a specified
knowledge. The knowledge meant is the knowledge specified in the
Code as the essential element of the crime. But what about the
second case ? In that case the Code does not specify any knowledge
but only an intention. Is the scope of the " knowledge " in this case
unrestricted ? Does it extend to and negative every incidental
delusion of fact which the drunkard in his disordered condition may
entertain ? I do not think so. In my opinion the " knowledge "
meant, is the knowledge which is the subject of discussion in
the connected -sections, namely, " knowledge of the nature and
consequence of the act." The law does not allow the drunken
man to say. that owing to his intoxication he did not know that a
particular blow or a particular stab with a particular instrument
would be likely to cause the death of a human being. But if in fact
the degree of intoxication was such that the man imagined that
what he was striking was not a man but a log, proof of this
circumstance would not be excluded. On the contrary, it would be
the very strongest evidence that the man had formed no murderous
intention.
The Sohcitor-General put to me the objection that this interpreta­
tion might have the result that in a particular case an artificial
knowledge might be imputed to a man, and that thereupon
irresistible logic might lead to the imputation of an artificial intention,
and that thus a man might be hanged on the basis of a knowledge
and an intention which he did not in fact possess. I think, however,
that if the word " knowledge " is interpreted as I have interpreted
it in the last paragraph, the risk of such a contingency is reduced
 ( 446 )

1924. to a minimum, if it is not altogether eliminated. There is certainly

o n e c a s e 1
BEBTBAM i* which a capital verdict may rest and may rightly rest-r
C.J. upon an imputed knowledge. It is the special case provided for by
The King v. paragraph " Fourthly " of section 294. The law will not allow a
Rengaaamy drunken man who fires down a crowded street to plead that owing
to his intoxication he did not know that the act "was so imminently
dangerous that it must in all probability cause death." I see
nothing necessarily repugnant to justice in this conclusion.
Other means of escaping from the difficulty of the Section have
been suggested. One is based upon theword " liable. " -The sugges­
tion is that the expression " shall be liable to be dealt with " has not
the same meaning as if the words had run " shall be dealt with."
It is suggested that the words were intended to give the Court-
or jury a latitude to deal with the offender according to their
discretion according to the circumstances of the case. I do not
think that this is a possible interpretation. It would be contrary
to all established principles to leave a capital sentence to the
discretion of a Court or jury. The issues for the Court or jury
under such circumstances must be " clean-cut," and it is impossible
that the framers of the Code could have intended otherwise.
Another suggestion was that made by my brother Garvin in the
course of the argument. He drew attention to the fact that there
are certain sections of the Code in which knowledge and intention
are specifically "stated in the alternative as elements of an offence.
See in particular section 313. He suggested that it was intended
that section 79 should apply to these cases only, and that in such
- cases the meaning is that in such cases an intoxicated person is
liable to be dealt with under the first of the alternatives. I cannot
bebeve that the section Was intended to have so restricted an
application. I can see no reason why it should not be held to apply
to cases in which knowledge alone is stated as an essential element
in the crime.
Another point raised in the course of the argument was that the
interpretation which I have proposed means that we are applying
English law to the case, and it has been ruled in a recent decision
in KachcheriMudaliyar v. Mohomadu (supra) that there is no justifica­
tion for holding that English law applies where our own Code is silent.
In adopting this view, however, we are not adopting English law,
we are simply interpreting the Code. The Code specifies a particular
intention as a necessary element of certain crimes. That question
is a question of fact for the jury, and we declare that in determining
that question the jury may take into account all relevant considera­
tions including the drunkenness of the accused. The fact that this
conclusion is in harmony with the conclusions of English law is
1
no objection to its adoption here.
This interpretation of the section is entirely, in harmony with the
general scheme of the Code with reference to murder and culpable
 ( 447 )

homicide. Subject to the qualifications above explained, the ques­

tion whether an intoxicated person is guilty of murder depends
upon whether he has formed what I may describe as a murderous
intention. That is a question of fact. For the purpose of deter­
mining that question of fact, the jury must attribute to him the
knowledge of the nature and consequences of his act that would
be attributed to a sober man. If they consider that the degree of
intoxication was such that he could not have formed a murderous
intention or any intention at all they must acquit him of murder,
and consider the question of culpable homicide. For the purpose
of that question they must attribute to the accused, within the
limits above explained, the knowledge of a sober man. The law
will not allow the accused to disclaim that knowledge, and if they
come to the conclusion that a sober man in the prisoner's position
would have known that he was likely by his act to cause death,
they must convict him of culpable homicide. This is subject to the
special case dealt with by paragraph " Fourthly " of section 294,
and also subject to the four exceptions enumerated under the
same section.

On this fuller consideration of the subject, I am satisfied that the

direction given to the jury was substantially correct, and that the
judgment and sentence should be confirmed.

D E SAMPAYO J.—

I agree with the judgment of the Chief Justice.

G A R V I N A. J.—

After careful consideration I have come to the same conclusion

as to the direction to be given to a jury in cases of self-induced
intoxication. I am mclined, however, to take the view that the
imputation of knowledge to a person in a state of intoxication,
which section 79 authorizes us to make, should be limited to the
one class of acts which are declared to be offences, whether they be
done with a particular intention or alternatively with a particular
knowledge. This view appears to me to be in strict accord with
the language of section 79 and to conform generally to the scheme
of the Penal Code.
Where an act is declared to be an offence only when it is done
intentionally, there seems to be no point in imputing knowledge
to the doer of the act, since knowledge in the absence of intention
does not, and can not, make the act a punishable offence. I can­
not believe that section 79 contemplated that in such cases the
knowledge of a sober man might be imputed to a person in a state
of intoxication with a view to basing upon it an inference of intention
from the knowledge so imputed. This would be to pass from an
artificial imputation of knowledge to an artificial imputation of
intention.
 I 448 )
1924. Where intention is the essence of the offence, it is a pure question
a

GARVIN A . J . of fact which jury is free to determine untramelled by any

artificial rules upon a consideration of all the facts and circumstances
The Kingv.
Rengaaamy of each case. The degree of intoxication of the person charged
is a circumstance which can and should be taken into consideration'.
This matter of intention, being a pure question of fact, as indeed
it is under the English law, it is I think competent for us to refer
to the English cases for guidance where guidance is necessary.
In the very few instances in which a particular knowledge and
not a. particular intention is essential before an act is punishable
as an offence, whether or not the doer of the act possessed the
necessary knowledge is a question of fact, and must be determined
accordingly. It is, I think, desirable to add that where the prosecu­
tion has established a prima facie case, it is for the person charged,
if he relies on intoxication as a defence, to satisfy the jury that he
had reached a state of intoxication which rendered him incapable
of forming the required intention, or to prove facts or point to
circumstances which are necessarily sufficient to raise a real doubt
in the minds of the jury as to his capacity to form the intention
imputed to him in the charge.
I agree with my Lord that paragraph " Fourthly " of section 294,
which is the only provision which contemplates a verdict of murder
in the absence .of specified intention, should in its application be
limited in the manner suggested b y him.

Judgment and sentence confirmed.