# CHANDRA SONIA v. STATE OF ASSAM

- **Citation:** [2011] 4 S.C.R. 15
- **Court:** Supreme Court of India
- **Decided:** 2011-03-30
- **Case number:** Criminal Appeal No. 131 of 2006
- **Bench:** Harjit Singh Bedi, Chandramauli Kr. " Prasad
- **Source:** https://unisonlegal.in/judgment/supreme-court-of-india/chandra-sonia-v-state-of-assam-27520
- **Pages:** 4

## Headnote

A
8
Penal Code, 1860- s. 302 - Double murder- Conviction
and sentence by the courts below - On basis of the extraC
judicial confession made by accused before prosecution
witness and recovery of the murder weapon at the instance
of the accused before Investigating Officer- On appeal, held:
Extra-judicial confession is a very weak piece of evidence and
ordinarily a conviction solely on the basis of such evidence o
cannot be maintained - However, in the instant case, the
extra-judicial confession was made by accused to the
prosecution witness in a different background inasmuch as
the
0 accused suspected that he had been identified by the
witness and he returned to warn her not to divulge any E
information to anyone - Statement of the prosecution witness
recorded uls. 164 Cr. P. C is almost in identical terms - The
very proximity of the murder and the extra-judicial confession
made to the prosecution witness shows that the confession is
reliable - A/so, the alleged murder weapon, had been
F
recovered at the instance of the accused -
Though,
independent witnesses of the recovery did not support the
prosecution, but no reason to doubt the evidence of the
Investigating Officer- Thus, prosecution case proved beyond
reasonable doubt - Evidence - Extra-judicial confession.
G
CRIMINAL APP ELLA TE JURISDICTION : Criminal Appeal
No. 131 of 2006.
From the Judgment & Order dated 24.8.2001 of the High
15
H
16
SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2011] 4 S.C.R
A Court of Gauhati at Gauhati in Criminal Appeal No. 170 of
2000.
Praneet Ranjan (A.C.) Rranay Ranjan, Hemant Kr. Yadav,
Rajesh Mishra for the Appellant.
B
Avijit Roy Corporate Law Group for the Respondent.
The following Order of the Court was delivered
ORDER
C
This appeal against the conviction has been filed against
D
the concurrent findings recorded by the trial court and the High
Court for a double murder committed on 7th October, 1990 for
which the appellant was sentenced for life on two counts, both
sentences to run concurrently.
As per the prosecution story, Somra Munda and Agnash
Munda, the father and brother of the first informant were
murdered during the night of 7th October, 1990 in their house.
The First Information Report was lodged by Chukhnu Munda
E at Police Station Marian on the 8th October, 1990 alleging that
during his absence from the house some persons had murdered
his father and younger brother. During the course of the
investigation, the police recorded the statement of various
witnesses including PW 1 Pradip Das and PW 2 Niran Sonia
F (who were both declared hostile), PW 5, the Medical Officer
who had conducted the post mortem on the two dead bodies,
PW 6 the informant and PW 7 Baloni Bawri, who was a
neighbour of the deceased, and to whom the accused had
made an extra judicial confession on the date of the murder
itself and PW 12 the Investigating Officer who was also a
G witness to the recovery of the murder weapon at the instance
of the accused. The trial court and the High Court have both
noticed that as the solitary eye witness had died and the other
two material witnesses PW 1 and PW 2 had been declared
hostile, the prosecution story rested exclusively on the
H confession made by the accused to PW 7 and the factum of
•
•
CHANDRA BONIA v. STATE OF ASSAM
17
recovery of the dao at the instance of the accused before PW
A
12 the Investigating Officer.
At the hearing before us today, Mr. Praneet Ranjan, the
learned Amicus Curiae for the accused appellant has argued
that the only evidence against the accused was the extra judicial
B
confession made before PW 7 and as this evidence was a
weak kind of evidence, the conviction of the appellant could not
be maintained. He has further submitted that police had, in fact,
used third degree methods and tortured and threatened the
witnesses to give false evidence and as such the case against
C
the appellant appeared to be a concocted one.
Mr. Avijit Roy, the learned counsel for the State of Assam,
however, has supported the judgments of

## Text

•
[2011] 4 S.C.R. 15
CHANDRA SONIA
v.
STATE OF ASSAM
(Criminal Appeal No. 131 of 2006)
MARCH 30, 2011
[HARJIT SINGH BEDI AND CHANDRAMAULI KR.
"
PRASAD, JJ.]
A
8
Penal Code, 1860- s. 302 - Double murder- Conviction
and sentence by the courts below - On basis of the extraC
judicial confession made by accused before prosecution
witness and recovery of the murder weapon at the instance
of the accused before Investigating Officer- On appeal, held:
Extra-judicial confession is a very weak piece of evidence and
ordinarily a conviction solely on the basis of such evidence o
cannot be maintained - However, in the instant case, the
extra-judicial confession was made by accused to the
prosecution witness in a different background inasmuch as
the
0 accused suspected that he had been identified by the
witness and he returned to warn her not to divulge any E
information to anyone - Statement of the prosecution witness
recorded uls. 164 Cr. P. C is almost in identical terms - The
very proximity of the murder and the extra-judicial confession
made to the prosecution witness shows that the confession is
reliable - A/so, the alleged murder weapon, had been
F
recovered at the instance of the accused -
Though,
independent witnesses of the recovery did not support the
prosecution, but no reason to doubt the evidence of the
Investigating Officer- Thus, prosecution case proved beyond
reasonable doubt - Evidence - Extra-judicial confession.
G
CRIMINAL APP ELLA TE JURISDICTION : Criminal Appeal
No. 131 of 2006.
From the Judgment & Order dated 24.8.2001 of the High
15
H
16
SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2011] 4 S.C.R
A Court of Gauhati at Gauhati in Criminal Appeal No. 170 of
2000.
Praneet Ranjan (A.C.) Rranay Ranjan, Hemant Kr. Yadav,
Rajesh Mishra for the Appellant.
B
Avijit Roy Corporate Law Group for the Respondent.
The following Order of the Court was delivered
ORDER
C
This appeal against the conviction has been filed against
D
the concurrent findings recorded by the trial court and the High
Court for a double murder committed on 7th October, 1990 for
which the appellant was sentenced for life on two counts, both
sentences to run concurrently.
As per the prosecution story, Somra Munda and Agnash
Munda, the father and brother of the first informant were
murdered during the night of 7th October, 1990 in their house.
The First Information Report was lodged by Chukhnu Munda
E at Police Station Marian on the 8th October, 1990 alleging that
during his absence from the house some persons had murdered
his father and younger brother. During the course of the
investigation, the police recorded the statement of various
witnesses including PW 1 Pradip Das and PW 2 Niran Sonia
F (who were both declared hostile), PW 5, the Medical Officer
who had conducted the post mortem on the two dead bodies,
PW 6 the informant and PW 7 Baloni Bawri, who was a
neighbour of the deceased, and to whom the accused had
made an extra judicial confession on the date of the murder
itself and PW 12 the Investigating Officer who was also a
G witness to the recovery of the murder weapon at the instance
of the accused. The trial court and the High Court have both
noticed that as the solitary eye witness had died and the other
two material witnesses PW 1 and PW 2 had been declared
hostile, the prosecution story rested exclusively on the
H confession made by the accused to PW 7 and the factum of
•
•
CHANDRA BONIA v. STATE OF ASSAM
17
recovery of the dao at the instance of the accused before PW
A
12 the Investigating Officer.
At the hearing before us today, Mr. Praneet Ranjan, the
learned Amicus Curiae for the accused appellant has argued
that the only evidence against the accused was the extra judicial
B
confession made before PW 7 and as this evidence was a
weak kind of evidence, the conviction of the appellant could not
be maintained. He has further submitted that police had, in fact,
used third degree methods and tortured and threatened the
witnesses to give false evidence and as such the case against
C
the appellant appeared to be a concocted one.
Mr. Avijit Roy, the learned counsel for the State of Assam,
however, has supported the judgments of the courts below.
It is true that an extra judicial confession is a very weak o
piece of evidence and ordinarily a conviction solely on the basis
of such evidence cannot be maintained. The confession, made
by the appellant to PW 7, however, falls in a different category.
A reading of the evidence of PW 7 clearly reveals that her house
was about 100 yards away from the murder site and that when
E
she had come out from her house to throw the starch out of the
cooked rice, she had seen three persons running away from
the house of the deceased and that a little later, the appellant
- accused had come to her house carrying a dao and
addressing her as Didi had told her that he had murdered two
F
persons and cautioned her not to disclose this fact to anybody
otherwise she too would be killed, and on account of fear, she
and her husband had left their residence and shifted to some
other place, We also see that the statement of PW 7 recorded
under Section 164 Cr.P.C is almost in identical terms. It is
therefore evident that the extra judicial confession was made
G
in a different background in as much that as the appellant
suspected that he had been identified by the witness he had
returned to warn her not to divulge any information to anyone ..
The very proximity of the murder and the extra judicial
confession made to PW 7 speaks volumes as to its authenticity.
H
18
SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2011] 4 S.C.R.
A We also see from the record that the alleged murder weapon,
a dao, had been recovered at the instance of the appellant. It
is true that the independent witnesses of the recovery have not
supported the prosecution, but we have no reason to doubt the
evidence of PW 12 on this score.
8
On an overall assessment of the facts the prosecution story
is proved beyond reasonable doubt.
We thus find no merit in this appeal and the same is
C dismissed.
The fee of the Amicus Curiae is fixed at Rs. 7000/-.
N.J.
Appeal dismissed.
•