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What is the legal effect of an agreement to murder a person under the Indian Contract Act, 1872?

Question and options

What is the legal effect of an agreement to murder a person under the Indian Contract Act, 1872?

  1. It is unenforceable because its object is unlawful.

  2. It is enforceable as a valid contract.

  3. It is void because consideration is necessarily absent.

  4. It fails because the parties necessarily lack consensus ad idem.

Answer and explanation

Correct answer: A - It is unenforceable because its object is unlawful.

Under section 23 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, the consideration or object of an agreement is unlawful if it is forbidden by law or involves injury to the person of another, and every such agreement is void. An agreement to murder is therefore void and cannot be enforced, even where consideration and consent are both present; the defect lies in its object, not in any absence of consideration or of consensus ad idem.

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