Write a note on Questions lawful in cross-examination

Question: Write a note on Questions lawful in cross-examination.

Find the answer to the mains question only on Legal Bites. [Write a note on Questions lawful in cross-examination.]

Answer

Section 146 of the Indian Evidence Act deals with provisions relating to Questions lawful in cross-examination.—

In the course of cross-examination, a witness can, of course, be asked all questions relating to relevant facts. But in addition to such questions, the witness can also be questioned as to his character etc.

Thus a witness can be asked questions:

1. to test his veracity;
2. to discover who he is and what is his position in life,
3. to shake his credit by injuring his character.

Such questions can be asked even if the answer might tend directly or indirectly to criminate the witness or to expose him to a penalty or forfeiture.

Testing the veracity of a witness means ascertaining his honesty so as to advise the court to what extent the witness is creditworthy. Questions can also be asked to find out his position in life, that is, who he is, what he does, what is his source of livelihood or whether he is a genuine or a professional witness. All this may guide the court as to the creditworthiness of the witness.

Shaking the credit of a witness by injuring his character means to expose his respectability, that is, whether he is a respectable man and whether his character and conduct are such that he can be trusted to tell the truth to the court. This kind of questioning of the witness is known as cross-examination as to credit. The matter by which veracity is to be tested must be proved, Jagtii v. Badri, A.I.R. 1978 J.& K.

Where the question is relevant only for the purpose of affecting the credit of the witness, the court has to decide in accordance with the provisions of Section 148 whether the witness will be compelled to answer the question or not and may warn the witness that he is not obliged to answer it.

When the question asked is such that it may tend to criminate the witness, he may object to the question on the ground that the question is not relevant to the matter in issue [Queen v. Copal Dass, (1881) 3 Mad. 271.]

In Deb Narayan Haider v. Anushree [A.I.R. 2003 S.C. 3174] wherein a proceeding for maintenance by the wife, there was nothing in her pleadings or in the witnesses examined by her to show that the husband had affairs with any other lady. The court said that putting such questions to the witness produced by the husband was not permissible.

The Supreme Court has held in Som Nath v. Union of India, A.I.R. 1971 S.C. 1910 that where a witness is contradicted by reference to his previous statements as permitted by section 145, that part of the previous statement which is used for contradicting the witness is to be considered along with the evidence of the witness to assess the worthiness of the witness in determining his veracity. The whole of the previous statement cannot be taken as evidence in the case.

---

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