What is Dying Declaration?
A dying declaration is defined as a statement made by a deponent , who is unavailable to testify in court (due to the death of deponent), who made the statement under a belief of certain or impending death. The statement must also relate to what the declarant believed to be the cause or circumstances of the declarant's impending death.
The legal view behind the concept of dying declaration is that a person may not lie when he is on the deathbed. The concept is originated from the Latin maxim ‘Nemo moriturus praesumitur mentire’ which means ‘a man will not meet his maker or God with a lie in his mouth’. And thus, Dying declaration is admissible in court of law and considered as trustworthy evidence.
The law relating to dying declaration is provided under Section 26 (a) of Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA). Mainly, hearsay evidences arr not admissible in court of law. Unless the evidence tendered is tested by cross-examination, it is not creditworthy. However, Section 26(a) of BSA is an exception to this general rule.
Statutory Provision Related to Dying Declaration
Section 26(a) of the BSA: – This section deals with statements made by a person about the cause of their death or the circumstances of the transaction that led to their death, which are relevant in cases where the cause of death is in question.
Cases in which statement of relevant fact by person who is dead or cannot be found, etc., is relevant. –
Statements, written or verbal, of relevant facts made by a person who is dead, or who cannot be found, or who has become incapable of giving evidence, or whose attendance cannot be procured without an amount of delay or expense which, under the circumstances of the case, appears to the Court unreasonable, are themselves relevant facts in the following cases:-
(1) When it relates to cause of death. – When the statement is made by a person as to the cause of his death, or as to any of the circumstances of the transaction which resulted in his death, in cases in which the cause of that person’s death comes into question.
Such statements are relevant whether the person who made them was or was not, at the time when they were made, under expectation of death, and whatever may be the nature of the proceeding in which the cause of his death comes into question.
Recent Case Laws
Some of the recent landmark cases related to dying declaration are: –
Sharad Birdhi Chand Sarda vs State of Maharashtra, AIR 1984 SC 1622
In this case, the court held that in normal circumstances, a suicide note cannot be used as the sole basis for conviction. It must be corroborated with other substantive pieces of evidence (strong pieces of evidence).
Kamla vs State of Punjab, AIR 1992 SC 374
In this case, the court held that when there are multiple dying declarations made by one or several persons and they are inconsistent with each other, such dying declarations must be corroborated with each other and be examined in light of other Circumstantial evidences.
Sampat Babso Kale vs State of Maharashtra (2019, 4 SCC 739)
In this case, the court held that when there is a doubt as to the veracity (accuracy, truthfulness, conformity of facts) of any dying declaration, that whether the victim was in the fit state of mind to make the statement; then in such a case, the dying declaration cannot be treated as a sole basis for conviction. It must be corroborated with some other evidence too.
Jayamma vs State of Karnataka, AIR 2021 SC 2399
In this case, the Supreme Court held that a dying declaration is not admissible as the sole basis for conviction unless corroborated with witness statements, facts, and circumstances of the case.
Old Judgements
These are some of the old landmark cases related to dying declaration: –
Queen Empress vs Abdullah (1885, ILR 7 ALL 385)
In this case, the accused cut the throat of the deceased girl, due to which she couldn’t speak. Therefore, she indicated her finger towards the person who cut her throat. The Allahabad High Court held that no particular form of recording of statements is prescribed. Therefore, a dying declaration can either be in the form of an oral statement, written, gesture, or other, if any. Any dying declaration made through signs and nods is also relevant.
Pakala Narayana Swami vs Emperor, AIR 1939 PC 47
A box containing a dead body was found in the third coach of the train. After a few days, the wife recognised the dead body to be of her husband, who is no more. During the trial, the wife told the court that her deceased husband had told her several times about the letter obtaining the amount of the loan. Also, when she last met her husband, he informed his wife that he was going to collect the money and that he was threatening him not to give back the borrowed money.
The court held that the statement made by the deceased to his wife when he was going to collect money from some person was admissible as a dying declaration under section 32(1) of the Indian Evidence Act.
Kushal Rao vs State of Bombay, AIR 1958 SC 22
In this case, the court observed that it is not an absolute law nor is it the law of prudence that a dying declaration cannot be made as a sole basis of conviction. If a dying declaration is recorded by a competent authority in a proper manner and the court is satisfied with the veracity of such a dying declaration, then such a dying declaration can be considered as the sole basis of conviction. In such cases, a dying declaration is treated as a substantive (considerable) piece of evidence.
Maqsoodan vs State of Uttar Pradesh (1983) 1 SCC 218
In this case, the court held that if the declarant of any statement survives, then his statement cannot be used as a dying declaration under section 32 (1) of the Indian Evidence Act. However, it can be used for the purpose of corroboration under section 157 of the IEA and for contradiction under section 145 of the IEA.
Uka Ram vs State of Rajasthan, AIR 2001 SC 1814
In this case, the Supreme Court held that a person would not die with the lie on his lips because he had to meet the supreme power of this world, that is, God. The court further observed that the sense of imminent death produces in men’s minds the same feeling as that of a righteous man under oath; therefore, the chances of falsehood are totally nullified.