Evidence Law

Important Topics- (refer bare act extensively) (Complete overview in brief-

https://blog.ipleaders.in/indian-evidence-act-1872-an-exhaustive-overview/)

Burden of Proof, (https://blog.ipleaders.in/burden-proof-criminal-cases-changing-trends-

supreme-court-india/)

Confession, (https://blog.ipleaders.in/confessions-under-the-indian-evidence-act/)

Relevancy of facts & Admissibility (https://blog.ipleaders.in/relevancy-and-admissibility/)

(https://blog.ipleaders.in/relevancy-admissibility-admissions/)

Electronic Evidence, (https://blog.ipleaders.in/admissibility-e-evidence-indian-courts/)

Competency of Witness, (https://blog.ipleaders.in/witness-under-the-evidence-act-1872/)

Direct & Secondary Evidence, (https://blog.ipleaders.in/central-conceptions-law-evidence/)

Document Evidence, (https://blog.ipleaders.in/oral-documentary-evidence/Evidence)

Presumption, (https://blog.ipleaders.in/all-you-need-to-know-about-section-114-of-the-
indian-evidence-act-1872/)

Illegally obtained evidence, (https://blog.ipleaders.in/right-privacy-admissibility-illegally-

obtained-evidence/)

Hearsay evidence

(https://www.writinglaw.com/hearsay-evidence/
Long Answers
1. Under what circumstances the confession is admissible or
inadmissible? Substantiate your answer with relevant rules of evidence
and case law, if any.
2. Who is a co-accused and what is the evidentiary value of confession of
a co-accused? Cite statutory rules and case law to elaborate your
answer.
3. Comparatively discuss the difference between admissions and
confessions.
4. ‘A’ was called to police station for interrogation. During interrogation
‘A’ complained of severe stomach pain. He was taken to hospital in a
police van, while in hospital, he confessed to a doctor that he
committed robbery. Is the confession admissible?
5. What are the two ways in which the phrase “direct evidence” is used in
the law of evidence? Discuss fully with suitable illustrations.
6. What is meant by ‘direct evidence’ when contrasted with the
‘circumstantial evidence’? Does the meaning change when the term
‘direct evidence’ is used in relation to ‘hearsay evidence’? Substantiate
your answer with appropriate illustrations and case law.
7. Discuss the relevancy practice and procedure of Test Identification
Parade. Substantiate your answer with case law.
8. When are opinions of third person relevant according to the Indian
Evidence Act?
9. What is a relevant fact? Consider the following and determine the
„relevant facts‟ which may be offered in evidence by the prosecution,
should the police treat it as a murder case:
 Roger was found dead in his home where he lived with his wife
Rosy and a younger cousin Peter. When the police arrived, Rosy and Peter
told them that Roger had committed suicide by hanging from a hook in
their store room. However, the body was lying on the floor of the store
room and had strangulation marks on the neck. Peter told the police that
Roger was taken off the hook as they believed him to be still alive. He
also told the police that they had tried to revive Roger but in vain. The
police closely observed the scene of occurrence and also noticed the
following:
● The store room had a hook in the ceiling but the hook had cobweb around it.
● A nylon rope was lying beside the dead body.
● Roger was wearing a sleeping suit.
● The storeroom is attached to the front bedroom which was used only as a
guest room in the three BHK flat. Upon further investigation, the police also
found that
● Rosy and Peter were in a relationship.

10.What are the two senses in which the phrase ‘burden of proof’ is used?
Discuss the law relating to burden of proof in civil and criminal
proceedings. Substantiate your answer with illustrations and case law.
11.What are the general rules relating to burden of proof? Decide, with
reasons, upon who does the burden of proof lie in the following fact
situations?
(a) Smith is living abroad and Kristine was the caretaker of his
flat in Lucknow. In 2021 after the lockdown restrictions were eased,
Smith came back to Lucknow and to his horror found that the flat was
sold out to James who had also moved in the flat with his family.
Smith claims that he did not sell the flat but James is convinced that
the deal was genuine. Kristine is untraceable. Smith wants his flat back
and has filed an eviction suit against James.
(b) Bell is accused of theft in a jewellery shop and Den of
receiving stolen property. Both are being tried jointly. Bell wants the
court to believe that he was elsewhere on the date and time of theft.
Den wants the court to believe that he had no knowledge that the
jewellery was stolen.
(c) A has filed a suit against B for dishonour of a cheque, that B had
drawn in his favour. B admits that he drew the cheque but denies
that the cheque was drawn for consideration. P.T.O. Section 118 (a)
of the Negotiable Instrument Act, 1881 provides that it shall be
presumed that every promissory note, including cheque, was drawn
for consideration. Substantiate your answer with the help of
statutory and case law.
12.Make an analytical survey of the development of the rules of
admissibility of electronic evidence in India. Mention, with reasons, if
the following is admissible as per the extant statutory and case law
applicable to admissibility of electronic record.
(a) Photocopy of a printout of a screenshot of a whatsApp chat
between two persons. Assume that the content of the chat is relevant.
(b) The flash drive to which the screenshot of the whatsApp chat
is transferred from the mobile phone.
(c) The mobile phone of the person who alleges that an
intimidating message was sent to him and he wishes to lodge a first
information report based on the content of the message.
13.Discuss the constitutional validity of Section 27 of the Indian Evidence
Act, 1872 with respect to issues raised in State of U.P. v. Deoman
Upadhyay case.
14.Define ‘presumption’, what do you mean by ‘may presume’, ‘shall
presume’ and ‘conclusive proof’?
15.Explain the provision related to Exclusion of oral evidence by
documentary evidence.
16.Discuss admissibility of following facts in the given circumstances:
(a) A and B are accused of committing the offence of robbery
and murder together, for which they are under joint trial. In their
separate statements to the police in custody, both A and B told the
police that they had used a knife of a certain make in the offence and
that they have hid it at a particular place. Statement of B was recorded
after that of A and on the basis of A’s statement, the police had already
discovered the knife from that place. B, at the time of making his
statement did not know of the fact of discovery. The prosecution seeks
to prove the discovery of knife against B.
 (b) In the above illustration, the recovery of knife was shown to
have been made from an open field where weekly market is held. The
prosecution seeks to prove the discovery of knife as one of the
circumstances against A.
(c) In illustration (a) above, the recovery of knife was shown to
have been made from a overhead tank at a railway platform. The
prosecution seeks to prove the discovery of knife as one of the
circumstance against A. Substantiate your answer with relevant rules
of evidence and case law, if any.
17.C sues B to enforce a right of way over B’s land which B had
purchased some time ago from A. At the trial, C offers to prove that
sometime after the sale was made to B, A admitted before X that C had
such a right of way and he sold the land in order to spite C. Can C
prove it? Discuss, with the help of relevant provision(s) and case law,
if any.
18.Discuss the admissibility of the following facts. Take help of relevant
provisions and case law, if any.
(a) X was in his bedroom when he heard his servant S cry from
the courtyard that A is killing B. He could also hear some noises
implying scuffle. When X rushed out, he found that B was unconscious
and A was seen running away. S again told X that A had killed B.
Upon A’s trial for murder, the prosecution seeks to prove what X had
heard from S. S is not available to give evidence as to what he saw on
the fateful day.
 (b) H is being tried for murdering his wife W. The prosecution
leads evidence of the fact that a lady had called the police emergency
response number from H’s landline phone soon before the murder took
place. The police personnel who received the call deposed that a lady
had asked “can I get police” but before she could tell further the call
was snapped.
19.Discuss, in the light of relevant provisions and case law, if any,
whether the following statements may be proved?
(a) A is prosecuted for drunken driving and causing of B’s death
by negligence. Upon trial, the prosecution has sought to prove that A
had called his wife W, soon before leaving for home, telling her that he
had had a party at a colleague’s place and that he was heavily drunk.
Although his wife asked him not to drive and take a cab instead, he
told her not to worry and boasted that he never loses sense. This
conversation was heard by another of A’s colleague C who has been
called as a prosecution witness.
(b) C meets his lawyer L, whom he has employed to defend him
in a murder trial. It seems to be a very strong case of prosecution and C
is desperate. In his desperation, C tells his lawyer L that he will go to
any extent to win over or eliminate the eyewitnesses for the
prosecution. Prosecution wants to prove what transpired between C
and L by producing L as a witness in C’s trial for intimidating the
prosecution witnesses.
20.What is meant by dying declaration? Explain its evidentiary value.
21.What do you mean by Secondary Evidence? State the circumstances in
which secondary evidence may be given.
22.Discuss presumption of legitimacy of a child under Indian Evidence
Act, 1872.
23.Explain the presumptions in cases of dowry deaths and rape cases.
24.What are privileged communications? Explain.
25.Discuss the controversy in Queen Empress v. Abdullah case.
26.Discuss the law relating to relevance of similar fact evidence.
27.Discuss the law regarding competency of a witness. Can a wife be a
competent witness against her husband?
Short Answers
1. Who may be treated as a police officer under Section 25 of the Indian
Evidence Act, 1872?
2. Relevancy admissibility and illegally obtained evidence.
3. Tests to determine whether a proceeding is judicial in nature.
4. Law of Evidence and quest for truth.
5. Explain the terms ‘proved’, ‘disproved’ and ‘not proved’.
6. Best Evidence Rule.
7. Who is an expert?
8. What are the twin objectives of cross-examination? Briefly discuss.
9. A is facing charges for murder of his wife C. Briefly discuss the
relevancy and admissibility of following statement made by the
accused A to B, his friend, soon after the murder took place: “I have
finished C and now I will live in peace. She had made my life hell and
was not ready to snap her ties with her boyfriend, in spite of several
warnings that I had given her. I could not bear the sight of her being in
bed with his boyfriend and attacked her. His boyfriend was lucky that
he could flee.”
10.Give your opinion on impact of DNA technology on conclusive proof
of legitimacy.
11.Is a child competent to testify? Briefly discuss.
12.Write note on Hostile witness.
13.‘A’ wants to adduce oral evidence to prove the genuineness of a
document. Can he do so?
14.Relevancy and admissibility.
15.What is the evidentiary value of admissions?
16.What is Hearsay Evidence?
17.The question is whether ‘A’ committed a crime at Calcutta on certain
day. The fact is that, on that day, ‘A’ was at Lahore. Is this fact
relevant?