Answer
Joint Offenders:
The law with regard to joint offender i enshrined in Ss. 34, 35, 37 and 38, which may be discussed below:
1. Common Intention:
When a criminal act is done b several persons furtherance of the common intention a
all each of such persons is liable for that act in the same manner as if it v4ere done by him alone. (S.34
2. Knowledge of Crime:
Whenever an act, which i criminal only, by reason of its being done with a criminal knowledge or intention, is done by several persons, each of such persons who joins in the act with such knowledge or intention is liable for the act in the same manner as if the act were done by him alone with the knowledge or intention. (S. 35)
The preceding section, viz, S. 34, deals with a case where a criminal act was done by several persons in furtherance of the common intention of all and each one is held guilty of the principal offence as if, the act had been done individually by him. This section provides that where the element of a particular knowledge or intention constitutes the composition of an offence, all the participators in the act must be shown to have that particular knowledge or intention in common in order to be liable for a crime committed by anyone of them. In other words if several persons jointly committed a murder with each having a different intention, or knowledge from the others, each is label according to his own criminal intention or knowledge and nothing beyond that. Thus X and Y beat Z who dies. X had an intention to murder him and knew that the act would cause death, but Y had only the intention of causing grievous hurt and did not know that his act would cause death or such bodily injury as was likely to result in death. X is guilty of murder and Y of causing grievous hurt.
3. Offence Committed Jointly:
When an offence is committed by means of several acts, whoever intentionally co-operates in the commission of that offence by doing any of those acts either singly, or jointly with any other persons, comprises that offence. (S.37)
Illustrations
A and B agree to murder Z severally and at different times giving him small doses of poison and administer the poison according to the agreement. Z dies from the effects of several doses of poison so administered to him. Here A and B intentionally co-operate in the commission of murder and, as each of them does an act by which the death is caused, they are both guilty of the offence though their acts are separate (b) A and B are joint jailers, and, as such, have the charge of Z. a prisoner, alternately six hours at a time. A and B, intending to cause Z’s death knowingly co-operate, in causing that effect by illegally omitting, each during the time of his attendance, to furnish Z with food supplied to them for that purpose. Z dies of hunger. Both A and B are guilty of the murder of Z.
4. Several Persons Engaged:
Where several persons are
engaged or concerned in the commission of a criminal act, they may be guilty of different offences by means of that act. (S.38)
Illustration
A attacks Z under such circumstance of grave provocation that his killing of Z would be only culpable homicide not, amounting to murder. B having ill-will towards Z, and intending to kill him and not having been subject to the provocation, assists A in killing Z. Here though A and B are both engaged in causing Z’s death his guilty of murder, and a is guilty only of culpable homicide.
This Section is both supplement and converse to S. 34. S. 38 obviously cover two different situations, viz. (1) were several persons at together in furtherance of Common’ intention, the punishment varying according, to circumstances, as in me illustration to S. 38 above, and (2) where there is action in common but a difference in the intentions of the participants. In the first case the section is a supplement to S. 34 but in the latter case it is converse to that section.