Section 136 of IEA : Section 136: Judge to decide as to admissibility of evidence.

Explanation using Example

Example 1:

Scenario: A murder trial where the prosecution wants to introduce a dying declaration as evidence.

Context: The prosecution claims that the victim, before dying, made a statement identifying the accused as the attacker. This statement is considered relevant under Section 32 of the Indian Evidence Act, which deals with statements made by persons who are dead.

Application of Section 136:

• The Judge asks the prosecution to prove that the victim is indeed dead before allowing the dying declaration to be admitted as evidence.
• The prosecution presents the death certificate and testimony from the attending doctor to establish the death of the victim.
• Satisfied with the proof of death, the Judge admits the dying declaration as evidence.

Example 2:

Scenario: A civil case involving a disputed property where one party wants to introduce a photocopy of a lost property deed.

Context: The plaintiff claims that the original property deed has been lost and wants to submit a photocopy as evidence to prove ownership.

Application of Section 136:

• The Judge asks the plaintiff to prove that the original deed is indeed lost before allowing the photocopy to be admitted as evidence.
• The plaintiff provides testimony and an affidavit stating the circumstances under which the original deed was lost, along with a police report filed for the lost document.
• Satisfied with the proof of the loss of the original deed, the Judge admits the photocopy as evidence.

Example 3:

Scenario: A theft case where the accused is charged with receiving stolen goods.

Context: The prosecution wants to introduce evidence that the accused denied possession of the stolen goods when questioned by the police.

Application of Section 136:

• The Judge asks the prosecution to first establish the identity of the stolen goods before allowing the evidence of the accused's denial to be admitted.
• The prosecution presents evidence, such as witness testimony and photographs, to identify the stolen goods.
• Satisfied with the identification of the stolen goods, the Judge admits the evidence of the accused's denial of possession.

Example 4:

Scenario: A contract dispute where one party claims that a series of emails constitute an agreement.

Context: The plaintiff wants to introduce a chain of emails to prove that an agreement was reached between the parties.

Application of Section 136:

• The Judge asks the plaintiff to first prove the authenticity of the emails before allowing them to be admitted as evidence.
• The plaintiff presents evidence such as server logs, expert testimony on email authenticity, and the email headers to establish the authenticity of the emails.
• Satisfied with the proof of authenticity, the Judge admits the emails as evidence of the agreement.

Example 5:

Scenario: A fraud case where the prosecution wants to introduce a ledger showing fraudulent transactions.

Context: The prosecution claims that the ledger, maintained by the accused, contains entries of fraudulent transactions.

Application of Section 136:

• The Judge asks the prosecution to first prove that the ledger was maintained by the accused before allowing the entries to be admitted as evidence.
• The prosecution presents handwriting analysis, witness testimony, and other corroborative evidence to establish that the ledger was indeed maintained by the accused.
• Satisfied with the proof that the ledger was maintained by the accused, the Judge admits the entries as evidence of fraudulent transactions.