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    Exception To Hearsay Rule

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    Shubhangi Baranwal
    - Dying declarations are an exception to the hearsay rule and are admissible in court. They are statements made by a deceased person about the cause of their death. - They are considered reliable because the law assumes that a person near death has no motive to lie. It is also a necessity because the person cannot be cross-examined since they have died. - For a statement to qualify as a dying declaration in India, the deceased must be speaking about the cause of their death or circumstances leading to it. There is no requirement that they expected to die at the time of making the statement. Corroboration of dying declarations is not always required for conviction but is a matter of prudence for the

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    Exception To Hearsay Rule

    Uploaded by

    Shubhangi Baranwal
    90 views3 pages
    - Dying declarations are an exception to the hearsay rule and are admissible in court. They are statements made by a deceased person about the cause of their death. - They are considered reliable because the law assumes that a person near death has no motive to lie. It is also a necessity because the person cannot be cross-examined since they have died. - For a statement to qualify as a dying declaration in India, the deceased must be speaking about the cause of their death or circumstances leading to it. There is no requirement that they expected to die at the time of making the statement. Corroboration of dying declarations is not always required for conviction but is a matter of prudence for the

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    Exception to Hearsay Rule

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    - Dying declarations are an exception to the hearsay rule and are admissible in court. They are statements made by a deceased person about the cause of their death. - They are considered reliable because the law assumes that a person near death has no motive to lie. It is also a necessity because the person cannot be cross-examined since they have died. - For a statement to qualify as a dying declaration in India, the deceased must be speaking about the cause of their death or circumstances leading to it. There is no requirement that they expected to die at the time of making the statement. Corroboration of dying declarations is not always required for conviction but is a matter of prudence for the

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    90 views3 pages

    Exception To Hearsay Rule

    Uploaded by

    Shubhangi Baranwal
    - Dying declarations are an exception to the hearsay rule and are admissible in court. They are statements made by a deceased person about the cause of their death. - They are considered reliable because the law assumes that a person near death has no motive to lie. It is also a necessity because the person cannot be cross-examined since they have died. - For a statement to qualify as a dying declaration in India, the deceased must be speaking about the cause of their death or circumstances leading to it. There is no requirement that they expected to die at the time of making the statement. Corroboration of dying declarations is not always required for conviction but is a matter of prudence for the

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
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    Exception to Hearsay Rule: Dying Declaration

    -Shubhangi Baranwal

    Introduction
    Section 32 (1) of Indian Evidence Act, 1872 makes relevant and admissible evidence a Dying
    Declaration i.e., a statement made by a person who is dead and statement relates to cause of a
    death or to the circumstances of transaction resulting in his death.

    Dying Declaration is an exception to Hearsay Rule of Evidence. As a general rule hearsay


    evidence is excluded and the best evidence is given in every case [Myers v DPP]1. Section 60 of
    Indian Evidence Act, 1872 also declares that evidence in all cases must be direct. However,
    Dying Declaration creates an exception to this rule and the objective behind making Dying
    Declaration relevant in spite of it being a hearsay , can be found in the maxims – “NEMO
    MORITRUS PROESUMITUR MENTICE” which means that a person will not meet his
    maker without a lie in his mouth.

    Dying Declaration is permissible on the principle of necessity as the person whose statement is
    offered is either dead or not available and no better evidence can be had.

    The general principle on which this species of evidence is admissible is that these are
    declaration made in extremity, when the party is at the point of death, when every hope of this
    world is gone, when motive to falsehood is silenced and the mind is induced by the most
    powerful consideration to speak the truth [R v Woodcock]2

    1
    [1965] AC 1001
    2
    [1787] 1 Leach
    In the above case it was observed that ‘it is situation so solemn considered by the law , as
    creating an obligation equal to that which is imposed an obligation equal to that which is
    imposed by an oath administered in a court of justice’.

    Essential element for invoking Sec.32 (1)


     There should be a statement oral/written of a person who is dead.
     The statement have been made as to cause of his death or as to any circumstances of the
    transaction which resulted in his death
     The cause of that person death must be in question i.e., it must be in fact in issue.
     It is not necessary that when the statement were made the person was or wasn’t under an
    expectation of death what matters is that the person making the statement must eventually
    die.
     Dying Declaration will be relevant whatever may be the nature of proceeding i.e., under
    section32 (1) in civil as well as criminal proceedings

    The testimony of an ordinary witness is an admissible as evidence only when other party is given
    the opportunities to cross examine such witness. This opportunity of cross examination is not
    possible under section 32(1) because the person making the statement is dead

    However, by virtue of sec 158 IEA the statement can be contradicted or the credibility of the
    maker of the statement can be impeached in the same manner as that of an ordinary witness

    A statement would be relevant under sec. 32(1) only when the death of a person making
    statement is proved. This is provided under section 136 IEA which state that if the fact
    proposed to be true is one of which evidence is admissible only upon proof of some other fact.
    Such last mentioned fact must be proved before evidence is given of the fact first mentioned.
    This implies if Dying Declaration has to be proved then party proving Dying Declaration will
    have to first prove the death of a person. Death has to be proved and even be presumed under
    section 107 & 108 IEA.

    Corroboration of Dying Declaration

    The S.C in Atbir v. Govt. (NCT of Delhi)3 has summed up the legal proceedings governing dying
    declaration.

     The dying declaration can be sole basis of conviction if it inspires full confidence of the
    court.
     The court should be satisfy that the deceased was in a fit state of mind at the time of making
    the statement and it was not the result of tutoring, prompting or imagination.

    3
    (2010) 9 SCC 1
     When the court is satisfied that the declaration is true and voluntary it can base its
    conviction without any further corroboration.
     It can be laid down an absolute rule of law that Dying Declaration cannot firm the sole basis
    of conviction unless it is corroborated. The rule requiring corroboration is merely a rule of
    prudence.
     Merely because a Dying Declaration doesn’t contain all the details as to the accordance it is
    not rejected.
     If after careful scrutiny the court is satisfied that it is true and free from any error and
    coherent as well as consistent. There shall be no legal impediment to make it the basis of
    conviction even if there is no corroboration.

    Difference between English Law & Indian Law in Dying Declaration

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