Question

Principle: Whoever attempts to commit the offence of cheating, commits an offence.
Facts: A with an intention to defraud B, obtains from him an amount of Rs. 500.

• A. A has committed no offence
• B. A has committed the offence of cheating
• C. A has attempted to commit the offence of cheating
• D. A has attempted to commit and has committed the offence of cheating

Hint:

An offence of cheating is committed once the act has been carried out successfully, not just attempted.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

According to the principle, committing an offence is not limited to just attempting it. Since A successfully obtained Rs. 500 from B with the intent to defraud, A has committed the offence of cheating, not just attempted it.
Thus, the correct answer is (B).
Option (A) is incorrect because A committed an offence. Option (C) is incorrect as A did more than just attempt the offence, he succeeded in committing it. Option (D) is incorrect as it combines two actions that are unnecessary.

Answer 2

This question asks whether successfully obtaining money through deceit should be classified as a completed offence or merely an attempt. Let's evaluate each option.

1. A has committed no offence: A acted with intent to defraud B and actually obtained Rs. 500 from him through that fraudulent intent, which plainly amounts to wrongdoing; the facts leave no room for concluding A did nothing wrong.
2. A has committed the offence of cheating: The principle tells us that even attempting to cheat is itself an offence, meaning cheating is punishable at every stage from attempt onward. Here, A did not merely attempt to defraud B, A actually succeeded, obtaining Rs. 500 through fraudulent intent. Since even the lesser stage of attempt is captured as an offence, the completed act of successfully cheating B is necessarily also an offence, and A has committed it in full.
3. A has attempted to commit the offence of cheating: This undersells what actually happened. An attempt describes an incomplete effort, but A did not stop short, he actually obtained the money from B, meaning the offence was carried through to completion, not merely attempted.
4. A has attempted to commit and has committed the offence of cheating: This unnecessarily stacks two characterisations together. Once the offence is completed, describing it as also merely "attempted" is redundant and imprecise; the accurate description is that A committed the offence of cheating.

Since A actually obtained money from B through fraudulent intent, going beyond a mere attempt, and the principle treats even attempted cheating as punishable, the completed act here is fully an offence.

Therefore, the correct answer is A has committed the offence of cheating.

Answer 3

The principle sets a baseline, even a mere attempt to cheat is itself an offence, which means the bar for liability is already crossed at the attempt stage. The question is simply how far past that baseline A's conduct actually went.

1. A has committed no offence: Since even an attempt clears the baseline the principle sets, and A did not merely attempt but actually obtained Rs. 500 from B through fraudulent intent, A's conduct sits well past the point where the principle finds an offence. Concluding no offence at all ignores that the baseline was cleared long ago.
2. A has committed the offence of cheating: If an attempt alone already satisfies the principle's baseline for an offence, then a completed act, obtaining the money outright, necessarily satisfies it too, and more fully. A went beyond attempting and actually succeeded, so the completed offence of cheating is the accurate description.
3. A has attempted to commit the offence of cheating: This describes conduct that stopped at the baseline, an attempt, when in fact A's conduct went past it to completion. Since A actually obtained the money, describing it as merely an attempt understates what happened.
4. A has attempted to commit and has committed the offence of cheating: This tries to keep both the baseline description and the completed description at once, but once conduct passes the baseline into completion, the attempt label becomes redundant, the accurate single description is simply that the offence was committed.

Starting from the principle's own baseline, that attempt alone is enough for an offence, and noting that A went beyond attempt to actually obtain the money, the correct description is the completed offence.

Therefore, the correct answer is A has committed the offence of cheating.