Section 84 in the Indian Penal Code
84. Act of a person of unsound mind.-Nothing is an offence which is done by a person who, at the time of doing it, by reason of unsoundness of mind, is incapable of knowing the nature of the act, or that he is doing what is either wrong or contrary to law.
Insanity is based upon that at the time of the crime, the person was suffering from mental illness and therefore, was incapable of understanding what he was doing.
The defence of insanity refers to a crime in which a criminal admits the action but asserts an absence of understanding based on mental illness.
This is why it is more of an excuse rather than a justification of what he/she has done. The insanity law has proven to be very important for understanding the mental state of the insane person and providing him an exemption from criminal charges under appropriate circumstances.
In M’Naghten’s case, the judges declared the following insanity principles:
- That it is to be presumed that a convict is sane until the contrary is proven.
- That to establish a defence on insanity, the accused by way of his insanity should not be in a position to know the nature and consequences of his act.
- He did not know the nature and the qualities of the act he was doing.
- He did not know what he was doing was wrong.
A person with mental illness is not exempt from criminal responsibility only because there is a difference between legal insanity and mental insanity and the courts are concerned only with legal insanity.
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