Revisiting Medico-Legal Discourse on Insanity Defence Under the Era of Nizamut Adawlut in Colonial Bengal

Under British regime, Bengal being the place of culture and heritage had always been considered a centre of legal administration. Even before the colonial era, the shadow of modern thoughts and advanced theories in legal field started to be prominent in the undivided Bengal. History speaks very loudly that the age-old culture in socio-legal aspect was profound and rich in the soil of Bengal. A semblance of different religion as well as different policies of different rulers had created an unparallel and unique legal atmosphere in Bengal, where the principles and finer values of old Hindu legal philosophy and Islamic legal jurisprudence were deep-rooted. While the East India Company came into the scene, very naturally, the presence of them had also made an impact in Bengal’s legal culture. This research paper sticks its focal point on the specific issue of ‘insanity defence’ and its related medico-legal discourse in colonial Bengal during a particular period with a special reference to the Nizamut Adawlut. Basic research objective here is to explore the history and historicity related to insanity defence under the superior criminal court in colonial Bengal under pre-Indian Penal Code era. The exploration within a specific period of time is vital in the sense that the legal context related to non-compos mentis and insanity defence was chaotic at that time and after the coming into force, Section 84 had settled down all the chaos. Therefore, the legal analysis on this path during few years in Bengal will lead the readers to understand the entire process of evolution of insanity defence.