Offence, crime; act of wickedness. It is used as a genus, comprehending every crime and misde-meanour, or as a species, signifying a crime not indictable, but punishable summarily, or by the forfeiture of a penalty.
There are certain acts which are heinous sins and odious in the public eye and are punishable in the Ecclesiastical Courts, but not being punishable at Common Law, and the proceedings in the Ecclesiastical Courts being held to be prosalute anim' and not to entail any temporal injury, they cannot be classed with ordinary Common Law and statutory offences; and it is no slander to impute them unless special damage follows.
Other offences are divided into three classes, viz.:-
(1) Treasons; (2) Felonies; and (3) Misdemeanours. See several titles.
Consult Russell on Crimes; Archbolds' or Roscoe's Criminal Evidence.
It means any act or omission made punishable by any law for the time being in force and includes any act in respect of which a complaint may be made under s. 20 of the Cattle-trespass Act, 1871. [Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), s. 2(n)]
The word 'offence' in Article 20 of Constitution of India, is meant something which is a violation of a law in force and for the violation of which the law prescribes a penalty, Raj Narain Singh v. Atmaram Govind, AIR 1954 All 319.
Contempt of court is not an offence within the meaning of s. 5(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, State v. Padma Kant Malviya, AIR 1954 All 523 (537) (FB).
Even breaches of the Customs laws entailing a monetary penalty or forfeiture of the goods concerned would be offences as contemplated by Article 20(3), Collector of Customs v. Calcutta Motor and Cycle Co., AIR 1958 Cal 682 (685). [Constitution of India, Art. 20(3)]
The word 'offence' is not limited to offence against the Bombay Police Act, 1951, but include offences under Penal Code also, Virupaxappa Veerappa Kadampur v. State of Mysore, AIR 1963 SC 849: (1963) Supp 2 SCR 6.
The expression 'offence' is not defined in the Constitution. Article 367 of the Constitution says that unless the context otherwise provides for words which are not defined in the Constitution, the meaning assigned in the General Clauses Act, 1897 may apply. S. 3(38) of the General Clauses Act defines 'offence' as any act or omission made punishable by any law for the time being in force. The marginal note of our Article 20 is 'protection in respect' of conviction for offences'. The presence of the words 'conviction' and 'offences', in the marginal note 'Convicted of an offence', 'the act charged as an offence' and 'commission of offence' in clause (1) of Article 20, 'prosecuted and punished'in clause (2) of Article 20 and 'accused of an offence' and 'compelled to be a witness against himself' in clause (3) of Article 20 clearly suggests that Article 20 relates to the constitutional protection given to persons who are charged with a crime before a criminal court, Shiv Dutt Rai Fateh Chand v. Union of India, (1983) 3 SCC 529: (1983) 3 SCR 198: AIR 1984 SC 1194 (1207).
Offence shall mean any act or omission made punishable by any law for the time being in force. [General Clauses Act, 1897 (10 of 1897), s. 3(38)]
It generally implies infringement of public duty, as distinguished from mere private rights punishable under criminal law, Depot Manager, A.P. SRTC v. Mohd. Yousuf Miya, (1997) 2 SCC 699: 1997 SCC (L&S) 548.
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