http://JUDIS.NIC.IN SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Page 1 of 2  

PETITIONER: SOM NATH

       Vs.

RESPONDENT: STATE OF HARYANA

DATE OF JUDGMENT31/03/1980

BENCH: KRISHNAIYER, V.R. BENCH: KRISHNAIYER, V.R. VENKATARAMIAH, E.S. (J)

CITATION:  1980 AIR 1226            1980 SCR  (3) 280  1980 SCC  (3) 301

ACT:      Indian Evidence  Act Section 32-Dying Declaration-Value of.

HEADNOTE:      The petitioner  was found guilty of burning his wife by the Court  below. By  Special Leave Petition, the Petitioner sought to discredit the dying declarations.      Dismissing the Petition, ^      HELD: Concurrent  findings of  fact cannot be disturbed on enormity  of improbability.  The dying declarations under Section 32  of the Evidence Act, are the groaning utterances of a  dying woman in the grip of dreadful agony which cannot be judged  by the standards of fullness of particulars which witnesses may  give in  other situations.  To discredit such dying declarations  for shortfalls here and there or even in many places,  is unrealistic,  unnatural and unconscionable, if basically there is credibility. [280E-G]

JUDGMENT:      CRIMINAL  APPELLATE   JURISDICTION  :   Special   Leave Petition (Crl.) No. 3478 of 1979.      From the  Judgment and  order dated  10-8-1979  of  the Punjab & Haryana High Court in Criminal Appeal No. 427/77.      N.C. Talukdar,  J.P. Malhotra  and J.D.  Jain  for  the Petitioner.      The order of the Court was delivered by      KRISHNA IYER,  J., Wife  burning-that atrocious species of murder  horrendously escalating  in some  parts  of  this country-is the  shocking  crime  proved,  according  to  two courts, by the prosecution in this case. Concurrent findings of  fact   cannot  be   disturbed  save   on   enormity   of improbability which  we are  unable to  see in  the  present case. The  three dying  declarations corroborated  by  other circumstances are  sufficient in  our view to bring home the offence. Counsel  has sought to discredit these declarations relevant under  s. 32  of the  Evidence Act  forgetting that they are  the groaning  utterances of  a dying  woman in the grip of  dreadful  agony  which  cannot  be  judged  by  the

http://JUDIS.NIC.IN SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Page 2 of 2  

standards of  fullness of  particulars which  witnesses  may give  in   other  situations.   To  discredit   such   dying declarations for  shortfalls here  or there  or even in many places  is  unrealistic,  unnatural  and  unconscionable  if basically there  is credibility.  The terrible  in this case has taken  place in  the house  and in  the presence  of the husband who has been convicted. We hardly see any reason for interfering  with  this  conviction,  and  would  have  been shocked ourselves  if any  other  course  had  been  adopted either by  the trial  court or  by the  High  Court.  Gender justice has  a high  place in Indian criminal jurisprudence. Dismissed. N.K.A.                                   Petition dismissed. 281