It is a known fact for all of us that theft can only be carried out for the movable property. Therefore, movable property as the subject-matter of theft has wide connotations. Theft of any movable property signifies wrongful possession over the same. As the possession of the theft property is not legally recognizable, it has been declared as a criminal offence under the Indian Penal Code, 1860. The person whose property has been subjected to theft is compensated for the same as has been provided in the statute. A movable property consists of several elements inside it ranging from electricity, water to that of personal property like vehicles, money etc.

Therefore, the list of movable property is inclusive of everything except those that are attached to the earth. The reason why the movable property has become a subject-matter of theft is that the entire concept of theft revolves around movable properties. Therefore, this subject-matter requires attention in order to study the concept of theft. For any legislation to be framed and applied, it is necessary for the law-makers to be aware of the subject they are handling otherwise the legislation may not be of any use or rather of efficient use to govern theft, a criminal offence. The courts have been of greater help here. This is because the judgments delivered by the courts act as a precedent for the law-makers to follow while they carry out amendments in the existing law. The judgments are also a precedent for the investigating officers to avoid loopholes in the investigation and get hold of the offender easily to provide compensation and justice to the aggrieved party.

Movable property
Section 22 of the Indian Penal Code, 1960 defines the term movable property. The provision lays down that the term movable property includes corporeal property which excludes land and any other things attached to the earth permanently. The movable property provision is clear rather than being exhaustive as can be inferred from the language of the statute. The explanation of movable property is not limited to the Indian Penal Code, 1860 only. Section 3(36) of the General Clauses Act, 1897 also defines the movable property. The thing to be noticed is the definition is different according to the objective and the application of the statutes. But by not being limited to one statute, the movable property has proved out to be of relevance for several statutes. Going by the Indian Penal Code, 1860 in this concept, the mention of the term corporeal property within the ambit of movable property calls for an explanation as well. Corporeal property is any property which can be perceived only by senses.

On the contrary, if the same person buys a car and then sells the same to another in consideration of a certain amount cannot gain back or retain back the car because along with the possession he has also given away the title of ownership which cannot be retained until he buys his own car back. It was in the case of Superintendent and Remembrancer Legal Affairs, West Bengal v. Anil Kumar, it was decided by the court that the determining test as to whether a person is in possession of a property can be known by being aware of the fact whether the person is in the general content of the property or not. Possession can also be in the form of constructive possession. This happens when the person does not have an actual possession over the property and in such case the person should have possession under the legal view. This possession is known as de jure possession or in simple terms as legal possession. A person can be said to have constructive possession in the following cases as have been provided below:

In some places where the person exercises his control for example in a pond.
Whenever a person has delegated the responsibility of taking care of his property by another person which results in a master-servant relationship develops. But any person who is out of this relationship for them the property is a possession. Constructive possession applies to them.
Joint possession also exists. In one well-known case it was held that when there are a number of joint owners who are in joint possession with the property and among them if anyone dishonestly takes possession, he will be declared guilty of theft.

Theft of one’s own property
Removal of his own property is not categorised as theft as there is no provision in the Indian law declaring the same. Theft is termed as removal of someone else’s property with a dishonest intention with a motive to enjoy the property which the person was entitled to enjoy. But if a situation arises where A who has given her watch to be repaired by B and B in this situation remains the same lawfully in form of security for the debt and from him, A takes away the watch with a dishonest intention to deprive B of the security for the debt, then in such case A will be guilty of theft for the essential ingredients constituting theft is present in the captivity carried out by A. If such a situation or situation similar to this arises then a person will be guilty of committing theft of his own property under the Section 378 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.

Conclusion
Theft is always associated with movable property. As have been mentioned under Section 378 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, theft involves the illegal transfer of possession and not the ownership of the property. The first basic ingredient of constituting theft is that the property in concern is a movable property without which the existence of Section 378 would not have had any meaning. With the judgments delivered by the courts, the subject-matter of theft has developed a lot and will develop more. The movable property, therefore, plays an indispensable role in the offence of theft to arise.

Aishwarya Says:

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