Sweekruthi Prabhakar, Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad
ABSTRACT
The defence of insanity is commonly thought to reduce a prison sentence or relive the accused of a bigger punishment but that is not usually the case. Especially if one fakes their insanity. This paper will study the origin and background of the insanity plea. The researcher will study what the requirements to plea for insanity are. The difference difference between Legal Insanity and Medical Insanity will be identified. The defence of insanity varies in different countries. This paper will focus on how the defence in used in India but will also look at it in terms of other countries. There are certain loopholes regarding this defence as well as controversies surrounding it which will be discussed.
