Supreme Court: Principles To Be Followed In Case Of Multiple Dying Declarations
When dealing with multiple dying declarations, courts in India follow certain well-established principles to ensure that justice is served and that the declarations are reliable and admissible as evidence. The Supreme Court judgment (Abhishek Sharma v. State (Govt. of NCT of Delhi), 2023 INSC 924) provides a comprehensive discussion of these principles, which can be summarized and explained as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Principles to Be Followed in Case of Multiple Dying Declarations<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 Every dying declaration must be voluntary, reliable, and made when the declarant was in a fit mental condition to make such a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 Ideally, all dying declarations should be consistent. If there are inconsistencies, the court must assess whether they are material (i.e., significant enough to affect credibility) or minor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 If inconsistencies exist, the court should:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
o Examine the nature of the inconsistencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
o Consider whether the inconsistencies are reconcilable or go to the core of the prosecution\u2019s case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
o Assess whether the inconsistencies relate to details or the substance of the accusation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 In cases of inconsistency, the court may look for corroboration from other evidence on record to support the version given in the dying declarations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 Each dying declaration must be independently assessed on its own merits, and not rejected solely because of variations in other declarations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 If multiple declarations exist, the one recorded by a Magistrate or higher officer is generally given more weight, provided there are no suspicions about its truthfulness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 The medical fitness of the declarant at the time of making the statement is crucial, especially when there are doubts about the declarant\u2019s ability to speak or understand due to injuries or medication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 The court must also consider the possibility of tutoring or influence by relatives or others, and the circumstances under which each declaration was made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 Declarations relayed through multiple persons (hearsay) or by interested witnesses (such as close relatives) require corroboration and careful scrutiny. Statements lacking in detail or made by interested parties without independent support may be viewed with suspicion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Application in the Abhishek Sharma Case<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the referenced judgment, the Supreme Court examined four dying declarations (DD-I to DD-IV):<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 DD-I: Relayed through a police officer; considered hearsay and not directly admissible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 DD-II: Brief hospital record with insufficient detail and a suspicious gap before the accused\u2019s name was inserted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 DD-III: Detailed police statement, but no medical evidence on the declarant\u2019s fitness at the time, and no Magistrate present.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 DD-IV: Statement to the mother (an interested witness), lacking corroboration and with inconsistencies compared to other declarations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Court found:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 Material inconsistencies and lack of corroboration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 No declaration was made before a Magistrate or with clear medical certification of fitness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 No independent evidence corroborated the declarations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Consequently, the Court ruled out all four dying declarations and acquitted the accused, emphasizing that when multiple dying declarations are inconsistent and lack corroboration, conviction cannot be sustained solely on their basis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Summary Table: Key Judicial Principles<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Principle<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Explanation<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Voluntariness & Reliability<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Must be voluntary, reliable, and made in a fit mental state<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Consistency<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Declarations should be consistent; material inconsistencies are problematic<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Scrutiny of Inconsistencies<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Examine if inconsistencies are reconcilable or go to the root of the case<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Corroboration<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other evidence may be used to corroborate inconsistent declarations<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Independent Assessment<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Each declaration is assessed on its own merit<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Magistrate Preference<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Declarations before a Magistrate are preferred if free from suspicion<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Medical Fitness<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Declarant\u2019s medical condition at the time is crucial<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hearsay & Interested Witnesses<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Such declarations need corroboration and careful scrutiny<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In essence:
Courts must carefully scrutinize multiple dying declarations, focusing on voluntariness, consistency, corroboration, and the declarant\u2019s medical condition. Inconsistencies, lack of detail, or declarations from interested witnesses without independent support can render such evidence unreliable and insufficient for conviction.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Supreme Court: Principles To Be Followed In Case Of Multiple Dying DeclarationsWhen dealing with multiple dying declarations, courts in India follow certain well-established principles to ensure that justice is served and that the declarations are reliable and admissible as evidence. The Supreme Court judgment (Abhishek Sharma v. State (Govt. of NCT of Delhi), 2023 INSC […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5516","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n