In Brief
The appellant was convicted of murder (Section 302 IPC) by the High Court for shooting the deceased with a rifle following an altercation. The Supreme Court partly allowed the appeal, converting the conviction to culpable homicide not amounting to murder (Section 304 Part I IPC). Although the appellant exercised the right to private defence as the deceased aimed a rifle at him, he exceeded this right by shooting at the vital chest area instead of a non-vital part. The Court held that while the appellant acted without premeditation and in good faith, the disproportionate harm caused warranted Section 304 Part I conviction. The appellant was released as he had already served 10 years imprisonment, the maximum sentence prescribed."
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