Law and You > Criminal Laws > Indian Penal Code >Concept Application 1.3 (Ss. 1 to 5)

These are the FAQs asked on territorial jurisdiction of the Indian Penal Code. These are 3 Marks questions and answer is expected in about 150 words.

Answer the following questions Briefly (3 Marks)

Q1. Explain the meaning of the term “Intra-territorial Jurisdiction”.

Section 2 discusses intra-territorial jurisdiction. Under the IPC, intra-territorial jurisdictions deal with crimes and offences committed by anyone within the territory of India.  The phrase “within India” used Section 2 of the IPC gives intra-territorial jurisdiction of the Code which includes land, rivers, a territorial area in the high sea within 12 miles from the coast of India. This section is applicable to citizens of India, foreigners, and legal entities like companies and associations.

According to Section 2 of IPC “Every person shall be liable to punishment under this Code and not otherwise for every act or omission contrary to the provisions thereof, of which he shall be guilty within India”.

Under Section 2 of the Code, persons like the President, Governors of States, foreign sovereigns, foreign ambassadors, diplomatic representatives, alien enemies, foreign army, and warships are exempted from the purview of the Code.

Q2. What are the essentials of Section 2 of IPC?

According to Section 2 of IPC “Every person shall be liable to punishment under this Code and not otherwise for every act or omission contrary to the provisions thereof, of which he shall be guilty within India”.

The essentials of Section areas follows:

• An offence must be committed by any person.
• The person should have committed some act or omission as per the provisions of this Code.
• The person will be guilty of the offences committed within India.
• The person will be liable only under this Code and not otherwise.
• The person should not be from persons in the exempted list

The phrase “within India” used Section 2 of the IPC gives intra-territorial jurisdiction of the Code which includes land, rivers, a territorial area in the high sea within 12 nautical miles from the coast of India. This section is applicable to citizens of India, foreigners, and legal entities like companies and associations.

Q3. What are the essentials of Section 3 of IPC?

According to Section 3 of IPC, “Any person liable, by any Indian law, to be tried for an offence committed beyond India shall be dealt with according to the provisions of this Code for any act committed beyond India in the same manner as if such act had been committed within India”.

The essentials of Section 3 of the IPC are as follows:

Essentials of Section 3 of IPC:

• An offence must be committed by any person. The definition of the word “person” (Section 11) includes a Company or Association or body of persons, whether incorporated or not is an artificial entity created for the purpose of business. Similarly, it includes Indian nationals and foreign nationals.
• A person must be liable under Indian law.
• The offence must be committed beyond the territory of India, either geographical or marine.
• Such persons shall be bound by Indian law for any offence committed outside India, as though the offence was committed within India.

This section is applicable to citizens of India, foreigners, and legal entities like companies and associations.

Q4. What are the objectives of extradition?

Extradition is the legal process by which a person is transferred from one country to another without the person’s consent n pursuance of a treaty or an ad hoc arrangement between the two countries.

The Objectives of extradition are as follows.

1. To prevent crimes and to punish the criminals who have escaped from their punishment and started to reside in another country.
2. To prevent and reduce the crimes in the international field and achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of a social character.
3. To create a deterrent effect that criminals cannot escape punishment by escaping to another country.
4. The State on whose territory the crime has been committed is in a better position to try the offender because the evidence is more freely available in that State only.

Q4. What is Admiralty Jurisdiction?

Admiralty Jurisdiction is the jurisdiction that confers the power on Courts to try offences that are committed on high seas. This type of jurisdiction was introduced by various statutes such as the Admiralty Offences Act, 1849, Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 with the Indian Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1891, and the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894. The principle behind this jurisdiction is the notion that a ship that floats on the high seas is like a floating island. Admiralty jurisdiction can be exercised in the following cases:

• Offences which are committed on Indian ships on high seas.
• Offences which are committed on foreign ships within Indian territorial waters.
• Piracy

Article 97 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which stated that “In the event of a collision or any other incident of navigation concerning a ship on the high seas, only the flag state of that ship can launch penal proceedings”. Article 100 of UNCLOS 1982 provides that such cases can only be conducted at the level of the Federal/Central Government and are outside the jurisdiction of the State Governments.

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