This comprehensive compendium not only contains all the rulings of the Supreme Court on the Evidence Act, 1872 from 1950 till the present but also contains the full statutory text of the Evidence Act. Furthermore, there are a large number of judgments in which the provisions of the Evidence Act are not expressly mentioned by the Supreme Court, but they are inferentially involved. The SCC Editors over the years have carefully studied each judgment of the Supreme Court since 1950 and have sifted and extracted every possible ruling of law that may be relevant to the Evidence Act,1872, thus making this compendium the most comprehensive source of rulings of law on the Evidence Act by the highest court of the land, which rulings are binding in the whole country under Art. 141 of the Constitution of India.

This Update ? Vol. 4 updates the case law in Supreme Court on Evidence Act, 1872 released earlier in 3 volumes, wherein case law covered is from 1950 to (2014) 5 SCC. Case-law in this Update ? Vol. 4 is covered from (2014) 6 SCC up to (2018) 1 SCC & (2017) 15 SCC. This Update ? Vol. 4, like the previous three volumes, not only contains all the rulings of the Supreme Court on the Evidence Act, 1872, but there are a large number of judgments in which the provisions of the Evidence Act are not expressly mentioned by the Supreme Court, but they are inferentially involved. The SCC Editors have sifted and extracted every possible ruling of law that may be relevant to the Evidence Act, 1872, thus making this compendium the most comprehensive source of rulings of law on the Evidence Act by the highest court of the land that is binding on the whole country under Art. 141 of the Constitution of India.

Furthermore, this Update ? Vol. 4 on the Evidence Act, 1872 has been interconnected with related rulings of law covered in Supreme Court on Criminal Procedure Code and Criminal Trial and Supreme Court on Penal Code, so as to conserve space.

Detailed Contents

EVIDENCE ACT, 1872 

Section 3  — Interpretation clause 

Section 4  — “May presume”

Section 5  — Evidence may be given of facts in issue and relevant facts

Section 6  — Relevancy of facts forming part of same transaction 

Section 7  — Facts which are the occasion, cause or effect of facts in issue 

Section 8 — Motive, preparation and previous or subsequent conduct 

Section 9 — Facts necessary to explain or introduce relevant facts 

Section 10  — Things said or done by conspirator in reference to common design 

Section 11  — When facts not otherwise relevant become relevant  . . . 

Section 14  — Facts showing existence of state of mind, or of body, or bodily feeling 

Section 15  — Facts bearing on question whether act was accidental or intentional 

Section 16  — Existence of course of business when relevant 

Section 17  — Admission defi ned  . 

Section 18 — Admission by party to proceeding or his agent; by suitor in representative character; by party interested in subject-matter; by person from whom interest derived 

Section 19 — Admissions by persons whose position must be proved as against party to suit  . . 

Section 20 — Admissions by persons expressly referred to by party to suit 

Section 21 — Proof of admissions against persons making them, and by or on their behalf 

Section 22 — When oral admissions as to contents of documents are relevant 

Section 23  — Admissions in civil cases, when relevant

Section 24  — Confession caused by inducement, threat or promise, when irrelevant in criminal proceeding 

Section 25  — Confession to police offi cer not to be proved 

Section 26  — Confession by accused while in custody of police not to be proved against him 

Section 27  — How much of information received from accused may be proved 

Section 30  —  Consideration of proved confession affecting person making it and others jointly under trial for same offence 

Section 32  —  Cases in which statement of relevant fact by person who is dead or cannot be found, etc., is relevant 

Section 34  —  Entries in books of account when relevant 

Section 35  —  Relevancy of entry in public record, made in performance of duty 

Section 40  —  Previous judgments relevant to bar a second suit or trial 

Section 41  —  Relevancy of certain judgments in probate, etc., jurisdiction 

Section 42  —  Relevancy and effect of judgments, orders or decrees, other than those mentioned in Section 41 

Section 43  —  Judgments, etc., other than those mentioned in Sections 40 to 42, when relevant 

Section 44  —  Fraud or collusion in obtaining judgment, or incompetency of Court, may be proved 

Section 45  —  Opinions of experts 

Section 45-A  —  Opinion of Examiner of Electronic Evidence 

Section 47  —  Opinion as to handwriting, when relevant 

Section 48  —  Opinion as to existence of right or custom, when relevant 

Section 49  —  Opinions as to usages, tenets, etc., when relevant 

Section 50  —  Opinion on relationship, when relevant 

Section 51  —  Grounds of opinion, when relevant 

Section 53  —  In criminal cases, previous good character relevant 

Section 54  —  Previous bad character not relevant, except in reply 

Section 56  —  Fact judicially noticeable need not be proved 

Section 57  —  Facts of which Court must take judicial notice 

Section 58  —  Facts admitted need not be proved 

Section 59  —  Proof of facts by oral evidence 

Section 60  —  Oral evidence must be direct 

Section 61  —  Proof of contents of documents 

Section 62  —  Primary evidence 

Section 63  —  Secondary evidence 

Section 64  —  Proof of documents by primary evidence 

Section 65  —  Cases in which secondary evidence relating to documents may be given

Section 65-A  —  Special provisions as to evidence relating to electronic record 

Section 65-B  —  Admissibility of electronic records 

Section 66  —  Rules as to notice to produce 

Section 67  —  Proof of signature and handwriting of person alleged to have signed or written document produced

Section 68  —  Proof of execution of document required by law to be attested 

Section 69  —  Proof where no attesting witness found 

Section 71  —  Proof when attesting witness denies the execution 

Section 73  —  Comparison of signature, writing or seal with others admitted or proved 

Section 74  —  Public documents 

Section 76  —  Certifi ed copies of public documents  . 

Section 78  —  Proof of other offi cial documents 

Section 83  —  Presumption as to maps or plans made by authority of Government 

Section 90  —  Presumption as to documents thirty years old 

Section 91  —  Evidence of terms of contracts, grants and other dispositions of property reduced to form of document 

Section 92  —  Exclusion of evidence of oral agreement 

Section 93  —  Exclusion of evidence to explain or amend ambiguous document 

Section 94  —  Exclusion of evidence against application of document to existing facts  . 

 Section 95  —  Evidence as to document in unmeaning reference to existing facts 

Section 96  —  Evidence as to application of language which can apply to one only of several persons 

Section 101  —  Burden of proof 

Section 102  —  On whom burden of proof lies 

Section 103  —  Burden of proof as to particular fact

Section 104  —  Burden of proving fact to be proved to make evidence admissible 

Section 106  —  Burden of proving fact especially within knowledge

Section 108  —  Burden of proving that person is alive who has not been heard of for seven years 

Section 110  —  Burden of proof as to ownership  . 

Section 112  —  Birth during marriage, conclusive proof of legitimacy 

Section 114  —  Court may presume existence of certain facts   . 

Section 115  —  Estoppel 

Section 116  —  Estoppel of tenant and of licensee of person in possession 

Section 117  —  Estoppel of acceptor of bill of exchange, bailee or liensee 

Section 118  —  Who may testify 

Section 121  —  Judges and Magistrates

Section 123  —  Evidence as to affairs of State 

Section 124  —  Offi cial communications 

 Section 126  —  Professional communications 

Section 132  —  Witness not excused from answering on ground that answer will criminate 

Section 133  —  Accomplice 

Section 134  —  Number of witnesses 

Section 135  —  Order of production and examination of witnesses 

Section 136  —  Judge to decide as to admissibility of evidence 

Section 137  —  Examination-in-chief 

Section 138  —  Order of examinations 

Section 139  —  Cross-examination of person called to produce a document 

Section 144  —  Evidence as to matters in writing 

Section 145  —  Cross-examination as to previous statements in writing 

Section 146  —  Questions lawful in cross-examination

Section 154  —  Question by party to his own witness 

Section 155  —  Impeaching credit of witness  . 

Section 156  —  Questions tending to corroborate evidence of relevant fact, admissible

Section 157  —  Former statements of witness may be proved to corroborate later testimony as to same fact

Section 159  —  Refreshing memory

Section 160  —  Testimony to facts stated in document mentioned in Section 159 

Section 161  —  Right of adverse party as to writing used to refresh memory 

Section 165  —  Judge’s power to put questions or order production