Voluntariness and Evidentiary Limits of Co-Accused Statements in Indian Criminal Law

Voluntariness and Evidentiary Limits of Co-Accused Statements in Indian Criminal Law

Introduction

The evidentiary status of a “voluntary statement of other accused” has remained one of the most contested questions under Indian criminal jurisprudence. While the criminal process aspires to discover truth, the law simultaneously erects procedural safeguards to insulate an accused from being condemned on the untested word of a co-participant. The tension between these objectives finds expression primarily in Sections 24 to 30 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, read with constitutional guarantees under Article 20(3) of the Constitution of India. This article critically analyses the statutory framework, doctrinal evolution and contemporary judicial trends in treating confessional or inculpatory statements made by one accused against another, with particular emphasis on the requirement of voluntariness and the limited, corroborative use permitted by law.

Statutory Framework

  • Section 24, Evidence Act 1872 – excludes confessions procured by inducement, threat or promise.
  • Sections 25 & 26 – render inadmissible any confession made to a police officer or while in police custody, unless recorded by a Magistrate.
  • Section 27 – creates a narrowly-tailored exception permitting proof of so much of an accused’s statement as leads to discovery of a fact.[1]
  • Section 30 – allows a Court, when two or more persons are tried jointly, to “take into consideration” a confession made by one affecting himself and others; crucially, it is not substantive evidence and requires independent corroboration.[2]
  • Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, Section 313 – enables the Court to put incriminating material to an accused; his answers may be considered but cannot substitute proof beyond reasonable doubt.[3]
  • Article 20(3), Constitution – safeguards against compelled self-incrimination and informs the interpretation of the above provisions.[4]

Jurisprudential Evolution

From Privy Council to early Supreme Court

The Privy Council in Bhuboni Sahu v. The King first articulated scepticism toward the use of co-accused confessions, describing them as statements not made under oath nor open to cross-examination, thereby lacking the hallmarks of reliability.[5] Building upon this, the Supreme Court in Kashmira Singh v. State of Madhya Pradesh authoritatively held that such confessions have merely “a supporting role” and cannot form the basis of conviction in the absence of substantive independent evidence.[6]

Consolidation of the Corroboration Rule

Subsequent decisions consistently reaffirmed the corroboration requirement. In State of U.P. v. M.K. Anthony the Court reiterated that even an extra-judicial confession is “weak” evidence, admissible only when corroborated by circumstances pointing unerringly to guilt.[7] Likewise, State of Rajasthan v. Raja Ram underscored that an extra-judicial confession or statement of co-accused must fit within an unbroken chain of circumstances; a missing link is fatal.[8]

Voluntariness as a Threshold Inquiry

The voluntariness of the statement is a sine qua non for admissibility. In State of Maharashtra v. Damu, the Supreme Court painstakingly examined the circumstances of police custody, the temporal gap before recording and corroborative evidence before declaring the confession voluntary.[9] Conversely, in Mohmed Amin v. CBI, the Court placed the initial burden on the prosecution to prove strict compliance with procedural safeguards; only thereafter does the burden shift to the accused challenging voluntariness.[10]

Section 30 through a Contemporary Lens

The contemporary apex decision in P. Krishna Mohan Reddy v. State of Andhra Pradesh (2025) re-emphasised that an exculpatory statement of one accused implicating another is inherently unreliable and cannot be pressed into service against the co-accused, the foundational rationale being absence of oath and cross-examination.[11] Further, Surinder Kumar Khanna v. DRI (2018) extended the principle to narcotics cases, holding that in the absence of substantive evidence, conviction cannot rest on the statement of a co-accused.[12] In narcotic prosecutions, the Constitution Bench in Tofan Singh v. State of Tamil Nadu (2020) declared that confessional statements to investigating officers under the NDPS Act are inadmissible, thereby tightening the admissibility screws even further.[13]

Voluntary Statements in Bail and Quashment Proceedings

High Courts routinely confront the question whether a chargesheet can survive where the sole material against an accused is a voluntary statement of a co-accused. A series of Karnataka High Court orders – Bhima (2014), Gavadu (2014), Imran Patel (2015), (2016), Surinarayana (2022) and Siddaraju (2025) – consistently grant bail or quash proceedings when prosecution lacks independent material beyond such statements.[14] These cases operationalise the Supreme Court doctrine at the pre-trial stage, preventing undue deprivation of liberty.

Analytical Themes

A. The Dual Requirement: Voluntariness and Corroboration

Voluntariness alone does not elevate a co-accused statement to substantive evidence. Even a perfectly voluntary confession remains “evidentiaryly anaemic” against others unless bolstered by corroboration. The logical predicate is that voluntariness concerns free will, whereas corroboration concerns truth value. Courts must therefore conduct a two-layered scrutiny, first filtering out involuntary statements under Sections 24-26 and Article 20(3), and second, demanding corroboration under Section 30.[15]

B. Section 27 Discoveries: A Limited Gateway

Where a voluntary statement leads to discovery – e.g., recovery of weapon or corpus – Section 27 salvages only that portion of the information which distinctly relates to the fact discovered. In State of Rajasthan v. Bhup Singh, discovery of the pistol pursuant to the accused’s statement was admitted, but the residual narrative remained inadmissible.[16] Thus, discovery cannot cure the fundamental hearsay defect of the broader confession.

C. Exculpatory v. Inculpatory Declarations

An exculpatory statement of an accused, blaming others while shielding himself, is accorded even less weight, as recognised in P. Krishna Mohan Reddy and earlier in . The rationale is self-serving bias; the declarant risks no penal consequence and therefore lacks the “sanction of truth”.[17]

D. Constitutional Overlay: Article 20(3)

The privilege against self-incrimination shapes the interpretative environment. The Bombay High Court in M.G. Anand v. State of Gujarat clarified that “compulsion” refers to physical or legally coercive duress; yet mental conditioning induced by custody can vitiate voluntariness.[18] The constitutional guarantee thus buttresses the statutory exclusion rules, ensuring that any confessional statement admitted passed the strictest voluntariness test.

Policy Considerations and Reform Prospects

  • Codification of Corroboration Standard – Parliament may consider amending Section 30 to expressly require “substantial and material” corroboration, bringing statutory language in line with judicial practice.
  • Mandatory Audio-Visual Recording – Statutorily mandating audio-visual recording of all confessional statements, not merely those under special statutes, can enhance reliability and judicial confidence, as suggested indirectly in Union of India v. Sandeep Kumar.[19]
  • Judicial Instructions – Trial Courts should incorporate standard jury-type instructions (even in judge-alone trials) cautioning themselves on the limited use of co-accused statements, thereby institutionalising prudence.

Conclusion

Indian criminal law calibrates a delicate balance between efficacious prosecution and protection of individual rights by subjecting the statement of a co-accused to a dual filter of voluntariness and corroboration. The journey from Bhuboni Sahu through Kashmira Singh to P. Krishna Mohan Reddy demonstrates an unwavering judicial commitment to guard against convictions founded upon inherently suspect material. High Court bail jurisprudence affirms that where the prosecution’s edifice rests solely on a voluntary statement of another accused, the edifice crumbles at inception. Going forward, statutory reinforcement of these principles and technological safeguards in recording confessions can further entrench the constitutional promise that no individual shall be deprived of liberty save by proof established beyond reasonable doubt, unclouded by the untested voice of a co-accused.

Footnotes

  1. Indian Evidence Act 1872, s 27.
  2. Id., s 30.
  3. Code of Criminal Procedure 1973, s 313; Parvez v. State of Rajasthan (2023) (Raj HC).
  4. Constitution of India, Art 20(3).
  5. Bhuboni Sahu v. The King, 76 I.A. 147 (PC 1949).
  6. Kashmira Singh v. State of M.P., AIR 1952 SC 159.
  7. State of U.P. v. M.K. Anthony, (1985) 1 SCC 505.
  8. State of Rajasthan v. Raja Ram, (2003) 8 SCC 180.
  9. State of Maharashtra v. Damu, (2000) 6 SCC 269.
  10. Mohmed Amin v. CBI, (2008) 9 SCC [relevant pages].
  11. P. Krishna Mohan Reddy v. State of A.P., SC 2025.
  12. Surinder Kumar Khanna v. DRI, AIR 2018 SC 3574.
  13. Tofan Singh v. State of Tamil Nadu, (2020) 4 SCC 1.
  14. Bhima v. State of Karnataka, 2014 SCC OnLine KAR 18; Gavadu, 2014 SCC OnLine KAR 8193; Imran Patel, 2015 SCC OnLine KAR 2306; Muddasir, 2016 KAR HC; Surinarayana, 2022 KAR HC; Siddaraju, 2025 KAR HC.
  15. State of Bihar v. Deepak Kumar, 2016 SCC OnLine Pat 3059.
  16. State of Rajasthan v. Bhup Singh, (1997) 10 SCC 675.
  17. P. Krishna Mohan Reddy, supra note 11.
  18. M.G. Anand v. State of Gujarat, 1985 Cri LJ [pages …].
  19. Union of India v. Sandeep Kumar, (2019) SC [pages …].