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| Type | Commercial Circular |
|---|---|
| Topic | parcel |
| Currency | Currency not verified |
witness as hostile witness as he was contradicting his own
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# Where Witness Turned Hostile - Some Typical Case Study
By
G. Dhanasekaran, Dy.CEE/EMU/HQ
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A hostile witness is one who deposes against the party who
produced him before the enquiry authority.
There is no proposition of law that a witness not partial or
partisan in favour of the party calling him is on that ground alone
to be treated as hostile.
The test is whether the witness desires to tell the truth and it is
for his purpose that the court is given discretion to permit the
person calling him to cross-examine him.
The usual cases of hostile witnesses are those in which they go
back upon the previous statements made by them, but that is
not the only contingency and, therefore, though a hostile witness
is unfriendly to prosecution he need not be untruthful.
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Though in the case of hostile witnesses, the court may permit
questions by way of cross-examination but it does not mean that
their evidence becomes untrustworthy.
Simply because a witness is hostile his evidence does not
become worthless.
The definition that hostile witness is one who is not desirous of
telling the truth is dead and buried and must be forgotten.
If the testimony of a witness is adverse to the party calling him
and he is given a chance to cross-examine then it is not correct
that his evidence cannot be believed in part and disbelieved in
part and must be excluded from consideration altogether and
either side may rely on his evidence and the whole of the
evidence in so far as it affects both parties favourably or
unfavourably must be considered for what it is worth.
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# Case Study
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Vigilance has conducted a check to verify source information
that commercial staff demands & accepts money for tea
expenses to unload two-wheelers from parcel vans.
Parcel porter was trapped by vigilance.
Two RPF constables, Three CVI’s formed the trap team.
Parcel clerk on duty was taken as witness after the porter
was trapped.
SW-4, a CVI booked the two-wheeler from Station A to Station
B on behalf of SW-2 (RPF constable).
SW-2 taken delivery of two-wheeler duly signed
the LT and registered.
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SW-2 asked the CO to push the two-wheeler up to the main
gate from platform.
Then, the CO (Parcel porter) demanded and accepted Rs.20 /-
for tea expenses.
Out of six Prosecution witnesses, three are CVIs – partisan /
Interested witness.
Two RPF constables are accomplice.
The last one, Parcel clerk on duty alone independent of the
check, available in scene brought as Prosecution witness.
At the enquiry, before EO, the Parcel clerk denied to confirm
some portion of his written statement executed at the time of
check.
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He stated under vigilance pressure, he executed such
statement.
He denied the money was recovered from CO, but stated that
it was picked up from PF by one of the CVIs.
After examination, the PO submitted to IO to declare the
witness as hostile witness as he was contradicting his own
statement.
IO after taking into consideration of the nature of deposition
declared the witness as hostile.
CO was allowed to cross-examine the witness.
Then PO was allowed to cross-examine the witness.
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The IO in his report stated that the statement executed by
Parcel clerk at the time of check was more reliable than his
deposition at the enquiry.
It has come on record that in case of two-wheelers booked
against LT, the passenger takes delivery of the item in the
platform itself and once he signs the documents and takes
delivery of the vehicle, Railway staff’s duty & responsibility
ceases.
The demand by the Porter was to bring the vehicle to the main
gate was not part of the du
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