Supreme Court Restores Attempted Murder Charge in Tractor Assault

The Supreme Court on 7 October restored an attempted-murder charge arising from an alleged tractor and axe attack in Rajasthan. It held that the High Court had wrongly reduced the charge from Section 307 to Section 308 of the Indian Penal Code merely because the wounds were on non-vital parts of the victims’ bodies. At the charge-framing stage, courts must ask whether the investigation discloses a prima facie case, not conduct a mini-trial. Intention or knowledge may be inferred from the weapon, persistence and manner of attack, not just the eventual injury. The record alleged that a tractor was repeatedly driven towards a family and that axe blows aimed at their heads caused deep wounds when they raised their arms defensively. The trial court may alter the charge later if the evidence warrants, the Court added.