HEARSAY EVIDENCE AND ITS GENERAL EXCEPTIONS

Cross examination, "beyond any doubt is the greatest legal engine ever invented for the
discovery of truth."1 Properly used, it exposes whatever weaknesses may inherently lie
in testimony by reason of errors of omission or commission, conscious or unconscious,
intended or unintended, in the perception, memory, narration and veracity of the
witnesses’2 .As a class of evidence hearsay evidence presents a problem for the trier and
the party opponent against whom it is offered. In trial of cases, the judge must make
inferences that evaluate the reliability of statements offered as testimonial proof. These
inferences depend on foundation facts of perception, memory, sincierity and certainly
use of language. As all these factors are human in nature it is but obvious that errors
will be present and hence justice in its true sense will not be done. Because of these
difficulties in today’s criminal trials hearsay evidence is not admissible as a rule of fact.

This article gives to the reader the basic outlines of hearsay evidence and its general
exceptions.

We also look into the fact that why hearsay evidence was not accepted as evidence in
the case of criminal trials and give relevant case examples of the same. This approach is
usually helpful as by this approach we can bring into the distinction between direct,
circumstantial evidence and hearsay evidence. we will see how hearsay evidence is
usually useful to plug the loopholes of law in cases of criminal trial especially in the
case of Mukhtiar Singh v State of Punjab 3 where the honorable supreme court used
hearsay evidence as substantive corroborative evidence to plug the gaps in witness
testimony. We also look into the general exceptions of this rule as laid down in certain
sections of the Indian penal code mainly from, sections 17 to 39.

1
see WIGMORE, EVIDENCE (2d ed. I923) p I367
2
See Mr. Chief Justice Breese in Marshall v. Chicago & G. E. Ry., 48 Ill. 475
3
AIR 2009 SC 1855.
We also look into the the theory of Res Gestae and how it is applicable to the cases of
hearsay evidence.

Sources:

1) Wigmore: on evidence.

2) Law of evidence: batuk lal.19th edn, 2010.

3) Law of evidence: avtar singh, 2008.

4) Hearsay and Non-Hearsay: Edmund M. Morgan Harvard Law Review, Vol. 48, No. 7 (May,
1935), pp. 1138-1160.

5) A Foundation Fact Approach to Hearsay Eleanor Swift California Law Review, Vol.
75, No. 4 (Jul., 1987), pp. 1339-1428