Report No. 185
Section 158
The heading of this Section reads: "What matters may be proved in connection with proved statement relevant under Section 32 or 33. It reads as follows:
"158. Wherever any statement, relevant under Section 32 or 33, is proved, all matters may be proved, either in order to contradict or to corroborate it, or in order to impeach or confirm the credit of the person by whom it was made, which might have been proved if that person had been called as a witness and had denied upon crossexamination the truth of the matter suggested."
This Section relates to 'credit of persons who are not witnesses'. The statements are of those who are dead (Section 32) or cannot be found or is incpapable of giving evidence or is kept out of the way by the opposite party (see Section 33), or whose presence cannot be obtained without any amount of delay or expense. Sarkar says (15th ed. 1999 p. 2291), the object of this Section is to expose statements by such persons to every possible means of contradiction or corroboration in the same manner as that of a witness before Court under cross-examination. No sanctity attaches to the statement of a person because he is dead or is not available.
No amendment is called for in Section 158.
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