Two policemen sentenced to life imprisonment for Karnal custodial death

A special CBI court recently convicted two policemen for the custodial death of a murder accused, who had been burnt alive inside the police station.

Daily Current Affairs Quiz 2021

The judgment relied heavily on the ‘dying declaration’ made by the victim prior to his death.

The law presumes that no person will meet their maker with a lie in their mouth. So Section 32 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 deals with cases in which statement of relevant fact is made by a person who is dead or cannot be found.

The general rule under Section 60 of the Act is that all oral evidence must be direct — he heard it, saw it or perceived it.

The grounds of admission under a dying declaration have been based on two broad rules —

• one, the victim being generally the only principal eye-witness to the crime; and
• two, the sense of impending death, which creates a sanction equal to the obligation of an oath.