Extra Judicial Confession Should Be Trustworthy To Establish Guilt: SC
📖 Extra-Judicial Confession Should Be Trustworthy To Establish Guilt: Supreme Court
🔹 Meaning of Extra-Judicial Confession
Confession: An admission made by the accused acknowledging guilt.
Extra-Judicial Confession: A confession made outside the court and not before a Magistrate. It may be made to a friend, relative, village elder, police officer (in some cases), or any private individual.
The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 governs confessions. While judicial confessions (before a Magistrate u/s 164 CrPC) carry high evidentiary value, extra-judicial confessions are considered weak evidence unless corroborated.
🔹 Supreme Court’s Principle
The Supreme Court has repeatedly held that extra-judicial confession can form the basis of conviction if:
It is voluntary.
It is truthful and trustworthy.
It is corroborated by other evidence.
The person to whom it is made is credible and impartial.
⚖️ If there is doubt, courts must seek corroboration before relying upon it for conviction.
🔹 Important Case Laws
Sahadevan & Another v. State of Tamil Nadu (2012) 6 SCC 403
The Court laid down principles for reliance on extra-judicial confessions:
It must be voluntary and true.
It should be corroborated by other reliable evidence.
The witness to whom confession is made must be unbiased.
Held: If proved trustworthy, extra-judicial confession can be the basis of conviction.
State of Rajasthan v. Raja Ram (2003) 8 SCC 180
SC held that extra-judicial confession is a weak piece of evidence.
It requires strong corroboration.
A conviction solely on such confession is unsafe unless it inspires full confidence.
Sk. Yusuf v. State of West Bengal (2011) 11 SCC 754
SC reiterated that courts must look for circumstantial or direct corroboration.
In absence of corroboration, extra-judicial confession alone cannot convict.
State of U.P. v. M.K. Anthony (1985) 1 SCC 505
Held: There is no legal bar to base conviction on extra-judicial confession if it is found reliable.
But courts must exercise great caution.
Pakkirisamy v. State of Tamil Nadu (1997) 8 SCC 158
Held: Extra-judicial confession, though admissible, is very weak evidence.
Courts should not rely upon it without corroboration.
🔹 Key Takeaways
Extra-judicial confession can be the sole basis of conviction only if it is:
✅ Voluntary
✅ Truthful
✅ Made before a credible person
✅ Corroborated by other evidence
Otherwise, courts treat it with caution.
✅ Thus, the Supreme Court has made it clear that extra-judicial confession should be trustworthy and credible to establish guilt, and conviction based solely on it is permissible only when it inspires full confidence.
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