New Delhi, January 17: A person cannot be expected to act in a cowardly manner when faced with an imminent threat to life and has got every right to kill the aggressor in self defence, the Supreme Court has held.
Such a killing is permissible under the law and cannot be equated with murder, a Bench of Justices Dalveer Bhandari and Asok Kumar Ganguly said.
“The law does not require a law-abiding citizen to behave like a coward when confronted with an imminent unlawful aggression. As repeatedly observed by this court there is nothing more degrading to the human spirit than to run away in face of danger.
“The right of private defence is thus designed to serve a social purpose and deserves to be fostered within the prescribed limits,” the Bench said a judgement.
–Agencies