Accordingto the case reports published by different authors, it is an understanding thatknives or arms, in general, have its origin in the process of human evolution,the invention of these arms were made by humans for the purpose of hunting andself-defence. Knives from a long time have been part of the country’s cultureit has been in the country in various sects or groups as the country nowlimited by the boundaries geographically but once was the land divided into thevarious kingdom.
Introduction
Asthe speedy progress of humanity and the growth of civilization, it becamenecessary to introduce laws regulating actions of the human being in society.The laws introduced in the societies by various scholars understanding therighteousness to be practised by the mankind made some action void or illegal,such actions were against the mankind, and it would result in disrupting theharmony of the society. The early end of kingships led into differentrevolution altogether resulting in the forming of the government. Thisadministration was based on different philosophies and ideologies, realizingthe contemplation of the world to make a better place. These authorities wereformed according to the legislation for its incorporation and also derivedtheir powers from such legislations.
Theauthorities were further subdivided into three parts forming the pillars onwhich the harmony and progress of the state will rely on, and the pillars weregiven authorities to make rules and regulation, to implement and watch therules and regulation with nexus sought to be achieved for the state. It becamea priority for the authorities to implement laws that were to be followedobediently, violating those would incur punishment for the person committingsuch an act. Many rules were written in terms of heinous crimes against mankindand were made punishable, and it came to the state’s attention that there is aneed to invent legislation controlling the roots of this tree whose branchesculminated into fruits of violation and brutality.
Theingredients involved- arms and ammunition to such brutality, the government understandingan urgent need to legislate the arms and its use by people or citizens of theland. Various countries made rules in this behalf according to the nature andobjective the state wants to achieve through these rules. In India, as thecountry’s origin from the times of the British rules, modernization andliteracy found its right characters in the land of scholars who decided toregulate brutal actions against mankind to be a punishable crime and legislateda charter of law enforceable by the authority to be known as Arms Act, 1959.
History of Knives Legislation
Thehistory of knives legislation finds its origin mostly in the southern states ofthe United States of America, and the regulation introduced was in prohibitive natureto eliminate the use of the knife for dueling and other deadly sports betweenmen for the purpose of entertainment.The rules made thereunder were differentaccording to the type of knives considering the deadly nature. The knives inthe early 19th century were used in the west for much reason includingsettlement of the dispute and other quarrels regarding land disputes among gangmembers. To eliminate these casual ways of settling disputes by means ofkilling increased on a large scale where it became a priority to curb andeliminate this practice, it was made illegal bypassing law in this behalf. Thislaw took a major turn after the Civil War in the USA; the laws were made morestringent with regards to purchasing and possession of the knives and otherarms.
Thelaw controlling the possession and use of the arms was first introduced in theyear 1878 after the first uprising in the year 1857 but the laws made in theyear arbitrarily allowed the sovereign to regulate the use of an arm at theirown peril. After independence, it needed to create such rules that wouldrequire the government to meet its objective.
Inthe year 1959, the Government of India passed an Act, i.e. The Arms Act, 1959tolegislate the acquisition, possession, use and disposal of arms in India in thelate 50’s by studying the use of the arms and its use during the period of theBritish rule in India. The scholars in the country realized the grievouseffects of the use of arm.
Legislationregulating Knives
InIndia, the arms and ammunition are regulated by the legislation passed by theparliament known as the Arms Act, 1959 and Arms Rule, 1962. According to theprovision specified and rules in this behalf states that any person who is a law-abidingcitizen will be allowed to have possession of the arms by the procedureestablished by the law. The provision incorporated was in effect from the year1962, though such right to possess the firearms was not made the fundamentalright but was accepted in the eye of law. This Act was enforced with the aim toregulate the use of arms and eliminate the trade and use of the illegal weapon.The rule states that any person under section 4 of the Arms Act, 1956 read withrules in Arms Rule, 1962 should not by any way acquire, possess, sale and useany arm or firearm whereby such arm is sharp edged and deadly by its verynature such as swords (including sword sticks), Dagger, Bayonets, spears(including lances and javelins), battle-axes, Knives (including Kirpan andkhukeris) or any other arms whereby such arm has a blade which 9” longer andhas wide breadth up to 2” broader for any purpose other than the purpose ofdomestic, agricultural, scientific, Industrial purposes, steel baton and allother weapons which are termed as “Life Preservers machinery used for makingarms category other than 3 and any other weapon notified by the CentralGovernment under section 4.
Theuse of knives in the way used or if such knives result in creating adisturbance or ruptures in any way the public tranquility, peace or if suchpiece of weapon creates an environment of fear would also be charged under theCriminal Procedure Code, 1973.
Theuse of any other weapon by any person by way of showing it or threatening it orto gain any undue advantage even without the intent of harming such person orgroup of such persons will be charged under section 425 of the Indian PenalCode.
Sucha person will also be held liable under section 268 of the Indian Penal Codeunder an act of public nuisance if such blade or knives creates such a situation.According to various laws made under the Indian legislatures, such as IndianPenal Code, 1860 and Criminal Procedure Code, 1973.
Typesof Knives
Thereis a list of knives mentioned in the list or schedules under the Arms Rules,1962 that specifically mentioned and prohibited by the Government following:
1.Swords:Thelong metal bladeconsists of sharp edges sometimes on the inner and outer edgesuse of thrusting and attacking with force to cause an injury to someone in theact of war.This head in the rules also prohibits the swords sticks which arebasically a walking stick or any stick mainly having a wooden covering fromoutside and blade or sword inside. Such sticks basically look like a walkingstick.
2.Dagger:Daggeris typically a small knife which is used for stabbing some because of its double-edgedsharpness on both the side of the metal blade makes a perfect knife for causingserious injury to person or animal.
3.Bayonets:The Bayonets are the type of knives that are typically seen on the rifle, itwas majorly used by the armies or land warriors where they used this knife at thetime for their defence. Such knives are now prohibited by the government.
4.Spears:A pointed blade used by the warriors that are made in way to cut the pressureof the air so as to hit the target by throwing it from a distance. It also tiedor affixed to a wooden bamboo to kill someone at a distance.
Kirpansin India
Akirpan is a sword or knife that has special permission given by theConstitution of India, Article 25(2) (b) of the Constitution of India allowsthe carriage of Kirpan by the person who identifies himself/herself as Sikhs.As secularism forms an inevitable part of the Indian Constitution that providesto recognize the land will practice no religion symbolically of the country butsuch every religion will be accorded with the same reverence as to any otherreligion without any distinct nature of minority or majority. Further, the articlealso states that every person will be allowed and is free to practice,propagate and profess about his religion and recognizes every religion in itsentirety with no modifications unless necessary.
Sikhsis one sect people originally from the northern part of the IndianSubcontinent. As per the Sikhism, tradition is practised, and it is vitallyimportant for the people of this sect to follow the cultural identity in the waythey practice, profess and propagate their religion. There is in a total offive articles compulsory as per the Sikh ideology to wear in a way to justicethe religious necessity such as:
1.Haircovered by the turban.
2.Kara (a steel bracelet)
3.Kanga (a small wooden comb)
4.Kacchera (undershorts)
5.Kirpan (a small knife or sword)
AKirpan is basically an article of faith in the Sikhism, and the word Kirpan hasderived from two words, i.e. Kirpa and Aan, that literally means an act ofkindness and self-respect respectively. This is symbolic of a belief that everyperson practising Sikhism should be generous and should always be protectinghis/her self-respect. In Sikhism, the Kirpan has no specific size orrequirement it depends upon the person who carries the Kirpan except it’sshould sheathe and worn with a strap.
TheIndian legislation, regulates the rules and regulation for the Kirpan, suchthat the Sikh or by any person without the authority of the Government or byany provision of the law will not be allowed to manufacture and sale the Kirpan.Though the word Kirpan has not been defined in the Arms Act but such arm willbe included in the meaning of the sword. Under the precedence set by theMagistrate Court in,The Crown v/s BastaSingh, (1922) I.L.R III Lah. 437 wherein a Sikh was arrested under thecharge of manufacturing and sale of Kirpan under section 19 (a) of Arms Act andpresented before the Magistrate where the person arrested was released by theMagistrate by stating the reason that as per schedule 2 of the Arms Rules, aperson identifying himself as Sikh will be allowed an exemption fromprohibition regarding the manufacturing and sale of Kirpan. According to thenew rules, any person though allowed to carry Kirpan in as an exception to therule of carrying a knife in the country has limited and regulated withreference to its and size and shape.
Self-Defense legislation in India
Anact of self-defence can be said as an act to protect oneself from any personwilling to or by committing such an act which may result in the one’s death.The pardoning for any act where the person seriously injures or sometimes suchinjuries led to the death of that person came in the society in the medievalperiod, at such time to pardon such action it was at the sole discretion of theKing. This was an attempt made by the administration and scholar who developeda sense of common understanding of the revolt of humanity against such crimes.In the case of the Brown v/s UnitedStates of America, Justice Holmes stated that it would more grievous crimecommitted by the states if such person would in turn for saving his lifecommits any action or cause any injury to a person willing to kill, would beallowed a pardon by the court of law. The principle of the uplifted knife is tobe understood in the context of protection from such attacks but then suchdecision will be on the sole discretion of the court and might differ dependingon the facts of the case.
InIndia, action of self-defence is considered as rightful action against thecrimes that take place against mankind, it is governed by the Indian PenalCode. The IPC under sections 96 -106 covers the act of self-defence, there isvarious interpretation of a situation where acting to save one’s life would be atimely demand and committing any action pursued immediately in the phases ofterror would be allowed a pardon. Such consideration based on the principle of“Necessity Knows No Law” it specifically states that if a situation arises werefollowing a legal procedure to save his/her life would be terrible or delayedchoice of action then such person can commit such act to mitigate the loss thatwill be caused to him/her, in turn, if such situation turns fatal then the courtwill have sole discretion depending on the facts of the case and evidencepresented to recognize the eligibility of the action by an individual forpardon.
Thoughsuch action is due for pardon by the court carrying knife for such act isprohibited, the law states that any person carrying any arm or knife for suchreason which does not comply with the requirement with regards to its shape andsize will not be allowed for any such reason.
TheAct states that any person in India will not be allowed to carry a knife whichmore the 9” long metal blade and 2” wide in size and such knife should be fancyin the way to be threatened by the public at large.
Inthe case of Malti Devi Singh & Othersv/s The State of Uttar Pradesh, whereby the accuser’s conviction of causinginjury to the respondent while acting in self-defence was considered by thecourt under the principle of the uplifted knife, the court set aside the orderof the lower court for the appellant’s conviction provided a legal theory by aneminent jurist the Justice Holmes who stated that “a detached reflection cannotbe demanded in the presences of an uplifted knife, the appellant.
Conclusion
InIndia the parliament has enlisted detailed laws regulating the states andaction of citizens, in the above article, it was discussed at length variousrules formed with due consideration for the use of arms. As the development is aconcern, it is important to maintain the harmony of the state as the paramountinterest of the administration, where any kind of fatal contemplation has to beavoided by way of legislating its use and other aspects relating to the commodity.The Indian legislature promulgates fairly codified provision enforceable in thecountry regulating the all the aspects of arms and ammunition. As this article discussesat lengththe permission to carry a knife with due consideration to the laws andprovides a brief about the curtailment of the usage of knives. The rationaleprovided for prohibition suggests the procuring step in understanding thefuture recourse regarding such arms, as amendment still suggest theadaptability of the Act to limit the use of arms, for any purpose other thanthe qualified use as recognized by the states.
Thearticle mainly covers the aspect of usage of Knives with its exception inrecognizing the need to curb the sale and usage of it in any other illegal waysor for such purpose which is with intent to disrupt the public tranquility. Thearticle also includes the exception provided by the state in this behalf andillustrates the understanding with regards to the case laws emphasizing that everyexception has its onus upon the person who pursues such exception or requiresthe exceptional context to be considered for use that is in violation of the statedprovision.
Lastly,it clears the understanding that the use of knives in any way has beenprohibited by the Arms Act, 1959 read with Arms Rule, 1962, further the act initself require a modification many aspects, but it may stay stringent with therules made regulating the manufacture, sale, possession, use and trade in theway of the knife.
The author of this blog/ArticleisKishan Dutt Kalaskar, a Retired Judge and practising advocatehaving an experience of 35+ years in handling different legal matters. Hehas prepared and got published Head Notes for more than 10,000 Judgmentsof the Supreme Court and High Courts indifferent Law Journals. From hisexperience he wants to share this beneficial information for the individualshaving any issues with respect totheir related matters.
Author :
Kishan Dutt Kalaskar
Advocate (Retired Judge)
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