Defamation under Criminal Law
It is held in Shrijeet Ramakant Mishra v. The State [2025] GCtR 1647 (Delhi) that for an offence under Section 499 IPC, the intention ormens rea to cause harm to reputation, is an essential ingredient. The element of such a culpable mental state forms the foundation of liability under the said provision. However, a Company, being an artificial and juristic person without a natural mind, is inherently incapable of possessing such intention or mens rea. The absence of a natural mind or capacity for forming the requisite mens rea precludes the attribution of criminal intent to a juristic entity. It follows that a Company cannot be prosecuted for the offence of defamation under Section 499 IPC.
One may note that S.499 / S.500 of IPC may now be compared with S.356 of BNS, 2023. Punishment can go upto 2 years imprisonment.
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