Offence Against State
121………Waging or attempting to wage war or abetting of war, against the Government of India
121A……..Conspiracy to commit offences punishable by section 121
122……….Collecting arms, etc. with intention of waging war against the Government of India
123……….Concealing with intent to facilitate design to wage war
124………. Assaulting President. Governor, etc., with intent to compel or restrain the exercise of any lawful power.
124A……….Sedition
125………….Waging war against any Asiatic power in alliance with the Government of India.
126…………..Committing depredation on territories of power at peace with the Government of India.
127…………..Receiving property taken by war or depredation mentioned in sections 125 and 126.
128………… Public servant voluntarily allowing prisoner of State or war to escape.
129………… Public servant negligently suffering such prisoner to escape.
130………….Aiding escape of, rescuing or harbouring such prisoner.
Offences Against State
The following our classification of the offences against state-
- Waging or attempting or of conspiring to wage, or collecting men and ammunition to wage war against the Government of India. (Section 121, 121A, 122, 123)
- Assaulting President, or governor of a state with intent to compel or restrain the exercise of any lawful power.(Section 124 )
- Sedition (Section 124)
- War against a power at place with the Government of India (Section 125) or committing depredations on the territories of such power. (Section 125 – 126)
- Permitting or aiding or negligently suffering the escape of, or rescuing or harbouring a State prisoner. (Section 128, 129 and 130)
Section 121:
“Whoever wages war against the Government of India or attempts to wage such war or abets the wagging of such war shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life and shall also be liable to fine.”
Illustration
A joint an insurrection against the Government of India A has committed the offence is defined on this section. Ingredients 1. Wagging war against the government of India or 2. Attempting to wage war against the government of India,3. Abetting the war against the government of India. On an observation of this Section, it is clear that the law punishes a person or group of persons for waging war means actually beginning a war attempting to wage war and Abetment to wage war at equal footing. So it can be said that the offence of waging war is harsh one.
Section 121A
“Whoever with in or without India conspires to commit any of the office punishable by section 121 or conspires to overawe by means of criminal force or the show of criminal force the government of India or any state government shall be punished with imprisonment for life or with imprisonment of either description which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable to fine.”
Explanation
To constitute a conspiracy under this section it is not necessary that any act or illegal omission shall take place in pursuance thereof.
Ingredients
This section provides for two types of conspiracies: 1. Conspiring within India or without India to commit any of the offences punishable under section 121 2. Conspiring to overawe by means of criminal force or show of criminal force, the central government or the state government.
Section 122
“Whoever collect men, arms or ammunitions or otherwise prepares to wage war with the intention of either waging or being prepared to wage war against the government of India shall be punished with imprisonment for life or imprisonment of either description for a term not exceeding ten years and shall also be liable to fine.”This section aims at punishing that the preparatory act itself. This also speaks about the men’s rea i.e. the intention to wage war or intention to prepare for waging war.
Section 123
“Whoever, by any act, or by any illegal omission, conceals the existence of a design to wage war against the government of India, intending by such concealment to facilitate or knowing it to be likely that such concealment will facilitate the waging of such war shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years and shall also liable to fine”
Ingredients
1. Any act or any illegal omission.2.Concealment of the existence of a design to wage war against the government of India.3. Intention to facilitate the waging of war by such concealment or knowledge that it is likely to that such concealment will facilitate the waging of war.
Section 124
“Whoever with the intention of inducing or compelling the President of India or the governor of any state to exercise or refrain from exercising in any manner any of the lawful powers of such President or Governor assault or wrongfully restrains, or attempts wrongfully to restrain or overawe by means of criminal force or the show of criminal force or attempts so to overawe such President and Governor shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years and shall also be liable to fine.”
Ingredients
1. Intention to induce or compel the President of India or the governor of any state.2. Such intention must be to make the President or Governor to exercise or to refrain from exercising in any manner any of the lawful powers of such President or Governor .3.(a) Assaulting or wrongfully restraining the President or Governor or (b) Attempting to restrain President or Governor or (c) Overawing by means of criminal force or the show of force the President or Governor (d)Attempting to overawe by means of criminal force the President or the Governor.
Section 124A
“Whoever by words, either spoken, or written, or by signs, or by visible representation or otherwise brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards, the Government established by law in India, shall be punished with imprisonment for life to which fine may be added or with imprisonment which may extend to three years to which fine may be added or with fine.
Explanation
1. The expression dissatisfaction include disloyalty and all feelings of enmity.2. Comments expressing disapprobation of the measures of the Government with a view to obtain their alteration by lawful means without exciting or attempting to excite hatred contempt or disaffection do not constitute an offence under this section.3. Comments expressing disapprobation of the administrative or other action of the government without exciting or attempting to excite hatred contempt or this disaffection do not constitute an offence under this section” The provisions of this section are not unconstitutional as being violative of the fundamental right of freedom of speech and expression under article 19(1) a of the Constitution. It is only when the words have the tendency or intention of creating public disorder or disturbance of law and order that the law steps in.
Ingredient
1. Bringing or attempting to bring into hatred, Contempt or exciting or attempting to excite disaffection towards the Government of India.2. Such act or attempt may be done (i)by words, either spoken or written or (ii) by signs or (iii) by visible representation.
Section 125
“Whoever wages war against the Government of any Asiatic power in alliance or at peace with the government of India or attempts to wage such war or abets the waging of such wars shall be punished with imprisonment for life, to which fine may be added with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years to which fine may be added or with fine.” This section restrains a person from making the base of intrigues and enter price for the restoration of disposed rulers or other like purposes. The fulfilment of the obligation of the state to allies and friendly powers requires that the abetment of such be forbidden. One sovereign power is bound to respect the subjects and the rights of all other sovereign powers outside its own territory. This section however does not affect India’s right as a sovereign nation to offer political asylum to a deposed ruler.
Section 126
Whoever commits depredations or makes preparations to commit depredation on the territories of any power in alliance or at peace with the Government of India shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years and shall also be liable to fine and to forfeiture of the property used or intended to be used in committing such depredation or required by such depredation.
Committing Depredation:
Means something more than a mere outrage against the property of an individual seem to have been contemplated.
Section 127
Whoever receives any property knowing the same to have been taken in the commission of any of the offences mentioned in section 125 to 126 shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years and shall also be liable to fine and to forfeiture of the property so received.
Ingredients
1. The property was obtained by waging war against any Asiatic power or by commission of Depredation.2. Such war or Depredation was punishable under section 125 to 126 3. Accused Received property 4. When he received such property he knew that it had been obtained as mentioned in ingredient (1)
Section 128
“Whoever being a public servant and having the custody of any state prisoner or prisoner of war, voluntarily allows such prisoner to escape from any place on which such prisoner is confined, shall be punishable with imprisonment for life or imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable to fine”
Ingredients
1. The accused being a public servant 2. He had the person in question in his custody 3. Such person was a state prisoner or prisoners of war. 4. The public servant allowed the present to escape from the place where he has he was confined voluntarily.
Section 129
Whoever being a public servant and having the custody of any state president or prisoner of war, negligently Suffers Such prisoners to escape from any place of confinement in which such prisoner is confined shall be punished with simple simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and can also be liable to fine.
Ingredients
1. The accused a public servant. 2. He had the custody of a state prisoner or prisoner of war 3. Negligently allows the person to escape from the place of confinement.
Section 130
“Whoever knowingly aids or assists any state prisoner or prisoner of war in escaping from lawful custody or rescues or attempts to rescue any such prisoner on harbours or conceals any such prisoner who has escaped from lawful custody or offers or attempts to offer any resistance to the recapture of such prisoners shall be punished with imprisonment or life or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable to fine.”
Explanation
A state prisoner or prisoner of war, who is permitted to be at large on his place within certain limits in India, is said to escape from lawful custody if he goes beyond the limits within which he is allowed to be at large.
Ingredients
1. The person is a prisoner of war or state prisoner.2. That person was at the time in lawful custody, or that such prisoner had escaped from lawful custody. 3. The accused had knowledge that such person was in lawful custody as a prisoner of state or of war or had knowledge that such prisoner was escaped from the lawful custody. 4. Accused aided or assisted such prisoner in escaping or that he rescued such prisoner or attempted to rescue or harboured or concealed such prisoner or he offered resistance to recapture.