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What is Evidence?
Evidence is anything which tends to persuade
an inquirer of the existence or non-existence of some fact or situation he is inquiring about. prefer other contrary evidence which he finds more persuasive. Thus, evidence need not in fact persuade the inquirer, it is enough that it tends to persuade him.
Evidence
may offer an answer which is rejected or one which, although accepted, is wrong; but if logically it offers an answer or an 3/29/12
decisions in our day-to-day life. There are no rules imposed on us from outside telling us what evidence we can act on in ordering our private life where we can be as capricious or illogical as we wish. court has to decide on questions of fact by following a body of rules. These rules stipulate as to what judicial evidence is acceptable to determine such questions of fact. These rules make up the law of evidence.
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the English law of evidence by Sir James Fitzjames Stephen in the form of express propositions arranged in their natural order, with some modifications rendered necessary by the peculiar circumstances of India. Evidence Act, contemporaneous decisions can serve as external interpretation. English aids of
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The Indian Evidence Act applies to judicial s. 4(m), CrPC defines judicial proceedings as
any proceeding in the course of which evidence is or may be legally taken on oath. An enquiry is judicial if the object is to determine a jural relationship between persons on the basis of evidence recorded in course of such enquiry.
What is a fact?
Fact means and includesa) Any thing ,state of things, or relation of
things, capable of being perceived by the senses (physical fact) conscious (psychological fact)
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contention between the parties, i.e. one which the plaintiff (or prosecutor) must establish to win his case, or which the defendant must establish to succeed in some defense which is open to him.
(a)substantive law : Thus, in an action in tort, it is the law of tort which prescribes the elements of tort which the plaintiff must prove if he is to win. 3/29/12
fact and another wherein, according to the rules of logic and common experience, the existence of one renders probable the existence or non-existence of the other. this relationship with a fact in issue is a relevant fact.
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What is proof?
Proof is the establishment of the existence or
non-existence of some fact to the satisfaction of the tribunal charged with the duty of trying fact. (Proved..Disproved.Not proved) although there are others namely admissions, judicial notice and presumptions.
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proved by evidence. It is only allowed to be proved if it is either in issue or has some degree of relevance to the facts in issue.
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one of logic and common sense whereas admissibility is a legal concept. reason that inadmissible. all irrelevant facts are
all relevant fact are not admissible as there are many rules excluding evidence of relevant facts on some ground or other.
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two senses :-
are proved i.e. by testimony of witnesses, oral or written, but it may also take a form of production of things, including documents (real evidence);
b) The term evidence is also applied to facts
which are allowed to be proved (i.e. are admissible) because relevant. Thus, a fact is said to be evidence of a second fact if the 3/29/12
evidence consists either of the testimony of a witness who perceived the fact to be proved or the production of a document or thing which constitutes the fact to be proved.
proved is the testimony of a witness who perceived, not the fact to be proved, but another fact from which the existence or nonexistence of the fact can be deduced, or the production of a document or thing from which 3/29/12fact to be proved can be deduced. the
persons and he himself has no personal knowledge of the facts to which he deposes then his evidence is said to be hearsay.
The general rule is that hearsay evidence is
not admissible. The person who saw or heard or otherwise perceived the fact must be produced and not someone to whom he gave or wrote an account of what happened. 3/29/12
better evidence might be available, e.g. a copy of a document which suggests that somewhere the original exists. the production of inferior evidence if the best could be produced.
evidence precluding secondary evidence when primary evidence could be produced. (See ss. 64 and 65, Indian Evidence Act). 3/29/12
Admissibility refers to whether a piece of Weight refers to the evidences cogency, i.e.
question whether it is worthy of belief, e.g. if it comes from a trustworthy source. Thus, credibility has to be distinguished from weight of evidence.
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