On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled that the determination of whether accused individuals shared a common intention to commit a crime should be left primarily to trial courts and High Courts [Baljinder Singh @ Ladoo and ors v State of Punjab].
Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) holds individuals jointly liable for a crime if they acted with a common intention. Similarly, Section 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which replaced the IPC in July, contains this provision.
In its September 25 judgment, a Bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Augustine George Masih emphasized that the Supreme Court should not directly adjudicate issues of common intention or common object, which are best addressed by lower courts. The bench noted that existing Supreme Court rulings on such matters provide sufficient guidance for trial courts to follow.
This ruling came while the Court confirmed the conviction and life sentences of multiple accused in a 1997 murder case. The crime was triggered by an altercation after one of the accused bumped another man with a scooter. Following the confrontation, the accused returned with his sons, all armed, and attacked several victims, some of whom were shot and killed.
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeals challenging a May 2011 Punjab and Haryana High Court order that upheld the 2001 trial court’s conviction. The Court noted that common intention was evident, as the accused fled the scene together with weapons, and their claim of false implication was unsubstantiated.
In the same ruling, the Court clarified that there is no fixed timeframe for forming common intention, stating that it can develop in a short period, even minutes before the crime. The Court explained that since common intention is a mental state, it cannot be directly proven but can be inferred from the actions of the accused before, during, and after the crime.
Advocates Sanjay Jain, Gurdeep Singh, Sajjan Singh Nahar, and Ruchika Bhan represented the appellants, while Additional Advocate General Gaurav Dhamma and Advocates Siddhant Sharma, Sheetal Dubey, Pragya Patel, and Malvika appeared for the State of Punjab.
