Abetment
Abetment means instigate, to encourage, to help. It consists three acts laid down in section 107.
- Instigating a person to commit an offence. {Section 107 Clause (1)}
A person instigates the doing of a thing that instigates any person to do that thing. A person instigates the other person the doing of a thing who by willful misrepresentation or willful concealment of a material fact which he is bound to disclose. The crime of abetment is complete as soon as the abettor has incited another to commit a crime, whether the latter consent or not, and whether having consented, he actually commits the crime or not.
E.g.:- A was not armed with a stick, but B gave a general order to beat, whereupon A picked up a stick and used it. It was held that B was guilty of abetting the assault.
- Engaging in a conspiracy to commit it. {Section 107 Clause (2)}
Conspiracy consist the agreement of two or more persons to do any unlawful act or to do a lawful act by it is sufficient if he engages in the conspiracy. by engaging in conspiracy for committing a crime.
In one case Emp. V. Punday, (1871 3 N.W.P. 3106), the accused represented to a women who prepared herself to commit suicide in their presence, that if she were to say ‘Ram Ram’, she would become sati. The pyre was set on fire, and the women died. It was held that accused person was guilty of abetment of suicide.
- Intentionally aiding a person to commit it.{Section 107 Clause (3)}
The third one is abetment by intentionally aiding the doing of that thing. A person is said to aid the doing of an act that, either prior at the time of the duty of an act, does anything in order to facilitate the duty of that act and thereby facilitates the duty thereof.
General Provisions:
- To constitute the crime of abetment, it is not necessary that the act abetted should be committed or that the effect requisite to constitute the crime should be caused.
- To constitute the crime of abetment, it is not necessary that the person abetted should be capable by law of committing a crime.
- To constitute the crime of abetment by conspiracy, it is not necessary that the abettor should concert the crime with the person who commits it. It is sufficient if he engages in the conspiracy and commits a crime.
- The abetment of the illegal omission of an act may amount to a crime, although the abettor may not himself be bound to do that act.
- When the abetment of a crime is an crime, the abetment of such an abetment is also an crime.
Jurisdictio Omnis 