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N. RAJAGOPALA AYYANGAR, K. N. WANCHOO, K. C. DAS GUPTA, J. C. SHAH, P. B. GAJENDRAGADKAR
Haricharan Kurmi: Jogia Hajam – Appellant
Versus
State Of Bihar – Respondent
Question 1? Question 2? Question 3?
Key Points: - The High Court's use of a co-accused confession as substantive evidence against others in a joint trial is improper; such confession can only be used to lend assurance to other evidence, not as independent proof. (!) (!) (!) - Section 30 of the Evidence Act allows a confession by one accused to be considered against co-accused, but only after other evidence is considered and found satisfactory; it does not elevate the confession to substantive proof on its own. (!) (!) (!) (!) - A confession of a co-accused is a weak type of evidence and requires corroboration; relied-upon confessions must be supported by independent, satisfactory evidence. (!) (!) - The Court must begin with other evidence and only then turn to a co-accused confession for assurance; a conviction cannot rest primarily on such confessions. (!) (!) - The appeals of Haricharan Kurmi and Jogia Hajam are allowed; their convictions and sentences were set aside and they were acquitted. (!)
Judgment
GAJENDRAGADKAR, C. J.: The two appellants Haricharan Kurmi and Jogia Hajam were charged along with four other persons with having committed an offence punishable under Section 396 of the Indian Penal code, in that during the night intervening the 24th and the 25th March, 1960, they committed dacoity in the house of Deokinandan Jaiswal, and during the course of the said dacoity, they committed the murder of Damyanti Devi, wife of the said Deokinandan Jaiswal. The names of the four, other accused persons are: Ram Bachan Ram, Jogender Singh, Ram Choudhury and Achheylal Choudhury. The learned Sessions Judge, Muzaffarpur, who tried the case, found all the six accused persons guilty of the offence charged. He accordingly convicted them of the said offence and sentenced them to suffer imprisonment for life.
2. This order of conviction and sentence was challenged by the said six accused persons by preferring appeals before the Patna High Court. The High Court has held that the learned trial Judge was right in convicting five of the six appellants because, in its opinion, the evidence led by the prosecution proved the charge against them beyond reasonable doubt. In regard to Jogende
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