| Q.1- | Define ‘abetment of a things’. |
| Ans.- | Section 107 of IPC defines ‘abetment of a thing’. It says that a person abets the doing of a thing, who abets – (i) by instigate (ii) by engagement through conspiracy and (iii) by helping the actor with aids. |
| Q.2- | Whether positive act for abetment is necessary? |
| Ans.- | Yes. Without a positive act on the part of the accused to instigate or aid in committing suicide, conviction cannot be sustained. |
| Q.3- | What do you mean by instigation? |
| Ans.- | A person who, by willful misrepresentation, or by willful concealment of a material fact which he is bound to disclose, voluntarily causes or procures, or attempts to cause or procure, a thing to be done, is said to instigate the doing of that thing. |
| Q.4- | Give example of abetment by misrepresentation? |
| Ans.- | A, a police officer, is authorized by a warrant from a Court to apprehend Z. B, knowing that fact and also that C is not Z, willfully represents to A that C is Z, and there by intentionally causes A to apprehend C. Here B abets by instigation the apprehension of C. |
| Q.5- | Whether silent assent or verbal communication is abetment? |
| Ans.- | No. A tells B that he intends to murder C, B says do as you like, A kills C, here B cannot be said to have instigated. It is not fulfilling the requirement of actively to suggest or stimulate the commission of an offence. |
| Q.6- | What are the basic elements of abetment by conspiracy? |
| Ans.- | Three things are necessary:
(i) a conspiracy between two or more persons; (ii) an act or illegal omission must take place in the presence of that conspiracy; and (iii) such an act or illegal omission must also take place in order to the doing of the thing conspired. |
| Q.7- | What do you mean by abetment by intentionally aids? |
| Ans.- | A person is said to aid the doing of an act who, either prior to or at the time of the commission of an act, does anything in order to facilitate the commission of that act, and thereby facilitates the commission thereof, is said to aid the doing of that act. |
| Q.8- | Whether mere helping of a person amounts to abetment? |
| Ans.- | No. A mere helping doesn’t amount of abatement, until the person who provides the aid does not know that an offence was being committed or constituted. |
| Q.9- | What is liability of an abettor, if the act be not committed? |
| Ans.- | Act of abetting offence has been completed; even the offence has not been committed. But, abettor is liable for less punishment then prescribed for the offence. |
| Q.10 | Whether a person is liable for the abetment of an offence under special legislation? |
| Ans.- | The offence of aiding and abetting is applicable to all statutory offences unless specifically excluded by statute. |
| Q.11 | Enumerate the ratio of liability of an abettor under IPC. |
| Ans.- | (i) same (equal) to the abetted offence (sections 109-114);
(ii) Specific punishment (sections 115, 117, 118 and first part of section 119); (iii) one-half of the maximum punishment (sections 119 part I); (iv) one-fourth of the maximum punishment (sections 116, 119 Part II, 120 part I); and (v) One-eighth of the maximum punishment provided for the abetted offence (section 120 part II). |
| Q.12 | Is there less punishment for an abettor, if the offence has been committed in different manner? |
| Ans.- | No. The abettor is equally liable for the same punishment as prescribed for the offence. |