Lawstates that whoever causes the death of any person by doing any rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.
The provisions of this section applies when following conditions are fulfiled –
1. Death of a human being;
2. The accused caused the death;
3. The death was caused by the doing of a rash and negligent act, though it did not amount to culpable homicide.
The provision applies to cases where neither there is intention to cause death, nor knowledge that death is likely. Yet, there is some form of mens rea. That is, the person has either acted in rash or negligent manner. If an act is intended to hurt and injure a specific person or object, the perpetrator of the act must be imputed with an intentional act done and cannot amount to a ‘rash’ and ‘negligent’ act. Rash means to act hastily as opposed to deliberate act. Negligence, on the other hand, means breach of duty to care that the circumstances call for. Here, the prescribedstandard of rashness or negligence is that it must be Gross.
Indian SupremeCourt hasobserved that the concept of negligence differs in civil and criminal law. What may be negligence in civil law may not necessarily be negligence in criminal law. For negligence to amount to an offence, the element of mens rea must be shown to exist and for an act to amount to criminal negligence, the degree of negligence should be much higher, that is, gross or of a very high degree. Negligence that is neither gross nor of a higher degree may provide a ground for action in civil law but cannot form the basis for prosecution.
In cases of Medical Negligence, to prosecute a medical professional under criminal law, it must be shown that the accused did something or failed to do something which in the given facts and circumstances no medical professional in his ordinary senses and prudence would have done or failed to do. And the injury sustained was most likely imminent.
