The voluntary nature of confessions and the importance of corroborative evidence in criminal cases.

Curgenven, J.

1. The two appellants have been convicted by the Sessions Judge of East Tanjore of the murder of one Nagendra Iyer on the night of lst-2nd April last at Mayavaram and have been sentenced to death. The case for the prosecution was in brief that the deceased man was a merchant trading in Madura. A few days before the occurrence he went to Mayavaram to collect his dues and, as he was accustomed to do, stayed in the house occupied by accused 1, his father and some of his brothers. These are Sourashtras, like the deceased himself. Nagendra Iyer collected a number of outstandings so that by 1st April he had with him a sum of over Rs. 900. He received a further sum of Rs. 105 from another Madura merchant, P.W. 3, to make some payments in Madura on his behalf. On the night of 1st April he went to rest at the house, sleeping on an outside pial with accused 1 and P.W. 3, while the father, P.W. 1, slept on another pial of the house. At about 2 a. m. the deceased got up intending to go to the railway station to catch the train to Madura and he left the house accompanied by accused 1, who carried his bundle consisting of some clothes wrapped in a carpet. Nagendra Iyer was not afterwards seen alive. On Wednesday the 4th, a body was discovered floating in a tank known as Arrankuttai in Mayavaram. When it was taken out it was clear that it had been the subject of murder, the throat having been cut back to the vertebral column and there being several other injuries. The identity of the body was not at first ascertained.

2. On the 5th the Circle Inspector received an anonymous letter stating that the body was that of a Madura merchant and that the murder was committed by the family of Ramu Iyer (P.W. 1) and one Gurumurthi (accused 2). This led to the discovery of evidence as to the movements and subsequent disappearance of Nagendra Iyer and to the incrimination of the accused two. It is unnecessary for us to discuss the evidence relating to the identification of the body, which has not been seriously attacked. We think there can be no doubt that, whether or not the body itself was recognisable, the discovery of the carpet, M.O. 3, and other things showed clearly that the corpse was that of the deceased. (After dealing with the evidence against accused 2, his Lordship proceeded). The first question is how much of this evidence is admissible. As regards the confession said to have been made to the Sub-Magistrate, it is true that Section 26 Evidence Act provides that no confession made by any person whilst he is in the custody of a police officer, unless it be made in the immediate presence of a Magistrate shall be proved as against him. But that is not to say that every confession made by a person in custody in the immediate presence of the Magistrate is admissible in evidence. The fundamental condition governing the admission of confessions is laid down in 8. 24, according to which a confession is irrelevant if it appears to have been caused by any inducement, threat or promise, etc. How this provision should be given effect to in practice has been the subject of a good many decisions such as Emperor v. Panchhauri Dutt 1925 Cal 587. Raggha v. Emperor 1925 All 627. For the purposes of the present case, it is enough to say that the circumstances in which the confession was made should not be such as to afford a well grounded suspicion that it was not voluntary.

3. What happened here was that the Sub-Magistrate was sent for and found accused 2 in the hands of a number of police officers. The Deputy Superintendent, who it is needless to say is an officer superior in rank to a Sub-Magistrate, asked him to hear accused 2s confession. The Sub-Magistrate thereupon took accused 2 about 10 yards away from where the Deputy Superintendent was sitting, but not otherwise apart, and without any inquiry whatever into the circumstances in which; the confession was to be made, askedlthim at once for the story. The .Sub Ragistrate was evidently