Dying declarations are sufficient for conviction if free from coercion and corroboration is not an absolute requirement unless doubts arise.

JUDGMENT

VIMAL KUMAR YADAV, J.

1. “A mother is the only person who carries you for nine months in her belly, three years in her arms and forever in her heart”.

2. The bond between the mother and children is so strong, pure and aboveboard that there is no scope for any sort of selfishness. There is a famous line in a song which goes as under that “Poot kapoot sune hai par na maata sunee kumaata”.

3. If something adverse happens to the mother involving her son, then there must be a very drastic reason behind it. If that incident happens to be the death or homicide of the mother, with allegations of the son’s involvement, apart from that of the husband, one can easily imagine how serious the reason must be. It would have to be something truly grave and devastating, where allegations of murder and destroying evidence are levelled against the son and the husband.

4. The judgment dated 20.04.2002 and the order of sentence dated 22.04.2002 are under challenge in the instant appeal and indispensable facts are to the effect that the deceased Gian Kaur was sleeping on the terrace of her house. In the early morning hours, an alarm was raised by some neighbours and then her daughter Taranjeet Kaur reached at the terrace where she found her mother in flames. She somehow took her mother to Safdarjung Hospital with the help of her brother Maan Singh.

5. On 05.04.2000, Mrs. Gian Kaur was admitted to Safdarjung hospital by her daughter and son, in 100% burnt condition. The doctor, apart from administering treatment, also ascertained the cause of the burn injuries, where she disclosed that her husband and son poured kerosene oil over her and set her ablaze. This, ultimately turned out to be her first dying declaration, made at about 9:30 AM. Subsequently, the second dying declaration was recorded by the Investigating Officer, where again she blamed both her husband and son, asserting that they had set her on fire after pouring kerosene oil. She ultimately succumbed to her injuries at around 11:15 PM on the same day/night. At the time of second statement of deceased, the sister-in-law of the deceased was also present and affixed her thumb impression on the statement as token of its correctness.

6. A case was registered under section 302, 201, 34 IPC against the husband and the son of the deceased, namely Didar Singh and Maan Singh respectively. Upon the charges being framed under the aforesaid sections, both the accused pleaded not guilty, and the trial commenced. During the trial, the prosecution examined 16 witnesses. The evidence so brought on record was put to the accused persons and their statements were recorded under section 313 Cr.P.C. They also examined one Mahinder Singh as a defence witness (DW-1). Ultimately, after the conclusion of the arguments, both of the accused were found guilty and convicted under section 302/ 34 IPC .

7. The case of the prosecution is primarily based upon the dying declarations of the deceased and other circumstantial evidence. This makes the dying declaration and the related law relevant in the present case.

8. It is, therefore, important to understand what a dying declaration is- when it is to be acted upon and when it cannot be. There are authorities on the subject that the dying declaration, if found to be reliable and truthful, is sufficient to convict an accused person. In such circumstances no corroboration would be required. However, as a matter of abundant precaution, the court may look for corroborative evidence.

9. A dying declaration is a statement made by a person who is about to die, explaining the cause of death or the circumstances leading to it. It is considered admissible evidence because it is believed that a person facing death is unlikely to lie. These statements can be oral or written and are admissible in cases where the person's death is in question, serving as an exception to the rule against hearsay evidence. A