Question:easy

Z is carried off by a tiger. X fires at the tiger, knowing that the shot might kill Z, but with no intention to kill Z, and in good faith trying to save Z. X's shot, however, gives Z a mortal wound. Choose the correct option:

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Separate knowledge of a risk from intention to cause harm. The Penal Code protects an act done in good faith for another person's benefit when consent cannot be obtained.
Updated On: Jul 17, 2026
  • X has committed an offence of a grievous nature.
  • X has no moral duty to save Z therefore he can be held liable.
  • X has not committed any offence, as the act was in good faith and for the benefit of Z.
  • None of the above
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The Correct Option is C

Solution and Explanation

Read the facts like a checklist rather than a story. The Penal Code first asks whether an act fits the definition of a crime, and then asks whether a general exception rescues it. X's shot mortally wounded Z, so on the surface X caused death. But the Code carves out acts done in good faith for the benefit of a person when consent cannot be had. Test X against that carve-out phrase by phrase: good faith, benefit of the other, no intent to cause the harm, and no chance to ask for consent.

  1. X has committed an offence of a grievous nature: This looks only at the wound and stops there. Every general exception in the Code applies to acts that in fact caused harm, otherwise the exception would have nothing to protect. Labelling the result grievous does not answer the legal question.
  2. X has no moral duty to save Z therefore he can be held liable: The reasoning breaks in the middle. Even granting that X had no duty to rescue, absence of a duty is not a source of criminal liability. A stranger who steps in to save someone is protected on the same footing as a friend or relative. The exception asks about good faith and benefit, not about pre-existing duty.
  3. X has not committed any offence, as the act was in good faith and for the benefit of Z: This matches the facts point for point. Z was already in the tiger's grip and facing near-certain death, so shooting the tiger served Z's benefit. X fired without any intention to kill Z. There was no moment in which Z's consent could have been sought. The Code's own illustration to the good-faith-for-benefit provision uses this exact tiger scenario.
  4. None of the above: Cannot be right once option (C) states the law correctly.

So option (C) is the answer. Notice the deliberate wording in the problem, "knowing that the shot might kill Z, but with no intention to kill Z". The Code separates knowledge of a risk from intention to bring about a result, and it is that separation, plus the good faith, that saves X.

Let's summarize:

  • An act done in good faith for another person's benefit, where consent cannot be obtained, is no offence.
  • Good faith means acting with due care and attention, and not with the aim of causing the harm that follows.
  • Knowing a harm might follow is not the same as intending it.

X fired in good faith to save Z from a tiger, so he committed no offence, and option (C) is correct.

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