The accused while he was in police lock-up at the police station confessed to another accused in private to have committed the crime. Is this confession relevant?

Question: The accused, while he was in police lock-up at the police station, confessed to another accused in private to have committed the crime. Is this confession relevant? [U.P.A.P.O. 1994]

Find the answer to the mains question only on Legal Bites. [The accused, while he was in police lock-up at the police station, confessed to another accused in private to have committed the crime. Is this confession relevant?]

Answer

A confession to an under-trial co-prisoner was not allowed to be proved in Heramba Brahma v. State of Assam, AIR 1982 SC 1595.

Section 26 provides that a confession that is made in the custody of a police officer cannot be proved against him unless it is made before a magistrate.

An extra-judicial confession can be made to or before a private individual. It can also be made before a magistrate who is not especially empowered to record confessions under section 164 of CrPC or who receives the confession at a time when section 164 is not applying. Such confession is weak evidence especially when it is made before a person with whom the accused had no previous contacts.

In Kishore Chand v. State of Himachal Pradesh, the extra-judicial confession was made to Pradhan who was accompanied by Police (inquiry) Officer. The only interference which could be drawn from the circumstance of the case is that the confession was made at the time when the accused was in the custody of police and it could not be proved against the accused.

In the case it is evident that the Police Officer has created a scene and to avoid Section 25 and 26, the Police Officer has left the accused in the custody of the village headman (pradhan). The Police Officer in this case has no difficulty taking the accused to the Judicial Magistrate and taking extra-judicial confession under section 164 of Cr. P.C which has got more probable value and it gives an opportunity to make the required warning, that this confession will be used against the accused, and after this warning, he records the confession.

Under section 26, no confession made by an accused to any person while in the custody of a police officer shall be proved against him.

This covers any person for instance another accused in the present case. In this case, the accused while he was in police lock-up at the police station, confessed to another accused in private to have committed the crime, such confession of the accused is irrelevant because it cannot be relied upon.

Extra-judicial confession though relevant is a weak piece of evidence to be used against him in court.

In examining the value of an extra-judicial confession one factor is whether the accused was a free man while making his confession. The second factor is that the value of the confession as evidence of the veracity of the witness to whom it was made. Since the confession was being made to another accused this cannot be used against him.

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Important Mains Questions Series for Judiciary, APO & University Exams

1. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-I
2. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-II
3. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-III
4. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-IV
5. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-V
6. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-VI
7. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-VII
8. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-VIII
9. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-IX
10. Law of Evidence Mains Questions Series Part-X