Brief Facts
- The case arises from the death of Shanti, a woman who was allegedly found in an unconscious condition and later declared dead. It was alleged that the accused son confessed his crime before villagers and the same was even mentioned in the contents of the complaint.
- A written report was submitted by her brother Rewat Ram, stating that Shanti had strained relations with her son (the accused) and that information was received from villagers that she had been throttled.
- On this basis, an FIR for murder under Section 302 IPC was registered, and the accused was arrested.
- During trial, the prosecution examined multiple witnesses, including family members and villagers, and relied heavily on alleged extra-judicial confessions and oral testimonies to establish guilt. The trial court convicted the accused and sentenced him to life imprisonment.
- Hence present Appeal.
Issues
- Whether an extra-judicial confession, being a weak form of evidence, can be safely relied upon for conviction without strong corroboration?
Held
- The High Court allowed the Appeal and acquitted the Appellants asthe Investigating Officer and other witnesses failed to prove the case of the prosecution beyond reasonable doubt. The villagers, who are the witness of extra-judicial confession, had turned hostile. The Court observed as under:
- The law in respect of extra-judicial confession is well settled. Such a confession as per the law settled by Hon’ble Supreme Court is a weak evidence and must be accepted with great care and caution. Hon’ble Supreme Court examined the issue of extra-judicial confession in the case of Sahadevan & Ors. Vs. State of Tamil Nadu reported in (2012) 6 SCC page 403, wherein the Court held that in case of circumstantial evidence the onus lies on the prosecution to complete the chain of evidence so that the guilt of accused can be proved beyond reasonable doubt. Hon’ble Supreme Court further held that the courts are duty bound to examine extra-judicial confession with care and caution. Extra-judicial confession being a weak piece of evidence, requires due appreciation and consideration of all the material evidence on record while keeping in mind that there are no material discrepancies or inherent improbabilities in the version of the prosecution.
- The Hon’ble Supreme Court by its judgment passed in the case of Sahadevan Vs. State of Tamil Nadu (supra)has cautioned that extra-judicial confession, being a very weak piece of evidence, should be taken as a base for conviction with due care and caution and only when it is supported by corroborated evidence of the prosecution. According to Hon’ble Supreme Court while basing the conviction on extra-judicial confession, the Court must take into consideration that there is no material discrepancy and inherent probabilities in the story of the prosecution and the evidence as brought before the trial court.
Relevant Para No.
- 31 and 33