Supreme Court Clarifies Causation Test in Delayed Death Murder Cases

The Supreme Court has established key tests to determine if murder is made out when death occurs days after a fatal injury, emphasising the need to prove a direct causal link between the act and the death.

The Court held that for Section 300 IPC to apply, the injury must be sufficient to cause death in the ordinary course, and no intervening medical negligence or external factor should break the chain of causation.

Accordingly, the appeal was dismissed, and the conviction under Section 307 IPC for attempted murder was upheld.

[Maniklal Sahu v State of Chhattisgarh]