Appreciation of Evidence in Sessions Cases - Justice D.Murugesan

accused persons came to beat complainant – Evidence of Witnesses, who are injured, cannot be rejected
on ground of enmity –Kallu alias Masih vs. The State of Madhya Pradesh - 2006 AIR SCW 177[E].
(f). Interested Witness: -
Section 3 – Interested Witness – Evidence otherwise reliable – Witness has also received injury in
incident – His evidence cannot be discarded merely on ground that ne is interested person – 2006 AIR
SCW 1302.
Section 3 – Interested Witness – Evidence of - Credibility – Relationship is not a factor to affect
credibility of a witness – Foundation has to be laid if plea of false implication is made – 2006 AIR SCW
3680 (A).
Section 3 – Interested Witness – Evidence of – Credibility - Murder case – Nothing elicited in crossexamination
of eye-witnesses – Their evidence corroborated by complaint and medical evidence and
weapon seized on disclosures made by accused – Cannot be rejected even though they were closely
related to deceased and inimically disposed towards accused – 2006 AIR SCW 4143.
(g). Non-Examination of independent witnesses :-
Section 3 – Non examination of independent witness – When Fatal – What is necessary for proving
prosecution case is not quantity but quality of evidence – Offence is committed in a village over a land
dispute – Independent witnesses may not come forward – However, some of witnesses examined by the
prosecution are independent – Their evidence is more or less consistent – Nothing has been pointed out to
discredit their testimonies – Testimonies of said witnesses cannot be rejected on grounds that all witnesses
are not examined – 2006 AIR SCW 4186.
The Hon'ble Apex Court in Jarnail Singh V. State of Punjab reported in 2009 (1) Supreme 224
has held that,
"It is no doubt true that conviction could be based on the sole testimony of a solitary eye-witness but in
order to be the basis of conviction his presence at the place of occurrence has to be natural and his
testimony should be strong and reliable and free from any blemish. In Chuhar Singh V. State of Haryana
(1976 (1) SCC 879) this Court held that what is important is not how many witnesses have been examined
but what is the nature and quality of evidence on which it relies. The evidence of a single witness may
sustain a sentence of death whereas a host of vulnerable witnesses may fail to support a simple charge of
hurt. Since the case must stand or fall by the evidence of single witness, it is necessary to examined that
evidence critically."
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