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Abhishek v. State of Rajasthan & Ors.

Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 1093Decided 7 Oct 2026
Criminal Appeal No. 4767 of 2026
Justice Aravind Kumar · Justice Vipul M. Pancholi

Background

Abhishek alleged that a group entered his family's field, repeatedly drove a tractor towards them and attacked them with sharp agricultural weapons. He and his father sustained deep arm and wrist wounds, while his mother was struck by the tractor. The trial court framed an attempted-murder charge against the second respondent, but the High Court replaced it with attempted culpable homicide because the wounds were on non-vital parts of the body.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court allowed Abhishek's appeal and restored the attempted-murder charge under Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code against the second respondent. It held that the location or severity of the eventual injury could not alone determine the charge: intention or knowledge had to be assessed from the entire alleged attack. The investigative material about repeated tractor passes, sharp weapons and victims shielding their heads justified proceeding to trial, without conducting a premature assessment of guilt. The trial court could later alter the charge if the evidence warranted it, and the Supreme Court expressly directed that its observations should not influence the trial's merits.

Lesson Learnt

An alleged attempt to kill does not become a lesser offence simply because the victim avoided a fatal injury. Restoring this charge means the accusation must be tried; it does not establish that the accused is guilty.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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