2025 INSC 376
SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
(HON’BLE ABHAY
S. OKA, J. AND HON’BLE UJJAL BHUYAN, JJ.)
STATE (CBI)
Petitioner
VERSUS
MOHD. SALIM ZARGAR @
FAYAZ AND ORS.
Respondent
Criminal
Appeal No. 1681 OF 2009 With Criminal Appeal No. 1770 OF 2009-Decided on
20-03-2025
Criminal,
TADA
Terrorist and
Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987, Sections 3, 4, 15 -
Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Rules, Rule 15 - Ranbir Penal
Code, 1932, Sections 118, 302, 368 and 365 - Arms Act, 1959, Sections 3/25 – TADA
- Appeal against acquittal –
Appreciation of evidence -
Confessional statement – Admissibility in evidence – Evidentiary value – Held
that sum and substance of Section
15 of the TADA Act is that a confessional statement made voluntarily
by a person before a police officer not below the rank of SP shall be
admissible in the trial of such person for an offence under the TADA Act -
Rule 15 deals with the procedural aspect regarding recording of confession made
to police officers under Section 15 - Respondent No. 1 was lodged in a BSF
camp at Srinagar where his confession was recorded - But there is no mention
where the confession was recorded - Further, the time when the confession was
recorded was not mentioned - PW-12 also did not mention whether he had afforded
any time to respondent No. 1 to reflect before making the confession which is
most crucial - This statement is as vague as it can be - Thus, there is clear departure
from the norms which renders the confession highly suspect - The record does
not contain any statement in the form of questions and answers wherefrom it
could be deciphered that PW-12 had reason to believe that respondent No. 1 was
making the confession voluntarily - Further, in his evidence PW-12 stated that
he was posted as SP, CBI in New Delhi - He was on a visit to Srinagar on
06.08.1990 when respondent No. 1 was produced before him - Confessional
statement of respondent No. 1 was recorded on the same day i.e. on 06.08.1990
at the BSF camp - It is thus apparent that since the confession was recorded on
the same day, hardly any or no time for reflection was given which has
vitiated the said confessional statement - The certificate appended to the
confessional statement is dated 16.09.1990 whereas PW-12 in his evidence stated
that he had recorded the confession of respondent No. 1 on 06.08.1990 - This is
again a grave discrepancy - This very confessional statement of respondent No.
1 was rejected by the Special Court in a prior case concerning the killing of
one BK Ganju where the said confessional statement was deemed inadmissible and
unreliable – Held that the confessional statement of respondent No. 1 could not
have been relied upon by the prosecution and was rightly rejected by the
Special Court - Acceptance of the same confessional statement of respondent
No.1 would disturb the finding of fact already recorded in the previous
criminal trial relating to the killing of one B.K. Ganju - In any case,
the said statement is clearly vitiated by non-compliance with the procedural
safeguards provided under Rule 15 and enumerated in Kartar
Singh (supra) - Do not find any error or infirmity in the view taken by
the Special Court in acquitting the respondents.
(Para
13.2, 14.6, 22 to 24 and 28)
JUDGMENT
Ujjal Bhuyan, J. :- This is an appeal
under Section 19 of the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities
(Prevention) Act, 1987 by the State (CBI) assailing the judgment and order
dated 20.04.2009 passed by the 3rd Addl. Sessions Judge, Jammu (briefly ‘the
Special Court’ hereinafter). By the aforesaid judgment and order, the Special
Court acquitted the respondents in CBI Case No. RC 5(S)/1990 for the offences under Sections 118,
302, 368 and 365 of the Ranbir Penal Code, 1932 (RPC)
and under Sections 3 and 4 of the Terrorist and
Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987, hereinafter referred to as
the TADA Act (since repealed).
2.
Genesis of the case can be traced to FIR No. 55/1990 registered at Police
Station Nageen, Srinagar under Sections 364, 341 and 120-B of RPC read
with Section 3(2) of the TADA Act. The FIR was lodged on the basis of
a complaint filed by Shri Ghulam Nabi Dar, a driver of Kashmir University.
Informant alleged that on 06.04.1990 at about 04.20 pm, Dr. Mushir-ul-Haq, Vice
Chancellor of Kashmir University, and his Personal Secretary Shri Abdul Gani
Zargar were kidnapped by armed terrorists from their official car outside the
Sadarbal Gate of the University. After taking them in the said vehicle for a
short distance towards Lal Bazar on Sadarbal Road, they were shifted to a red
Maruti van and taken away.
2.1
Subsequently, dead bodies of Dr. Mushir-ul- Haq and Shri Abdul Gani Zargar were
recovered on 10.04.1990. As a result, Section 302 RPC and Section
3/25 of the Arms Act, 1959 (‘Arms Act’ hereinafter) were added to the FIR.
2.2
Investigation of the case was transferred to the Central Bureau of
Investigation (CBI) on the request of the Jammu and Kashmir Government. On
the CBI taking over investigation, the case was re-registered as RC 5
(S)/90-SIU.V on 21.04.1990 under Sections 302, 341 and 364 RPC read
with Section 3 of the TADA Act and Sections 3/25 of the
Arms Act.
2.3
Investigation revealed that Hilal Beg was the self-styled Chief Commander of a
banned militant organization called Jammu & Kashmir Students Liberation
Front (JKSLF). He along with other members of JKSLF, including accused Javed
Shala, Tahir Ahmed Mir, Mushtaq Ahmed Sheikh, Mushtaq Ahmed Khan, Mohd. Hussain
Khan and Mohd. Salim Zargar entered into a conspiracy between 31.03.1990 and
06.04.1990 to kidnap Dr. Mushir-ul-Haq, the Vice-Chancellor of Kashmir
University and others to strike terror in the minds of the public, thereby to
compel the Government to release their associates, viz, Nissar Ahmed Jogi,
Gulam Nabi Bhat and Fayyaz Ahmed Wani. The conspiracy included execution of the
hostages if their demands were not met.
2.4
On 06.04.1990, at approximately 09.00 a.m., the accused persons grouped
together at Aftab’s house. They left the house of Aftab in a red Maruti van
bearing registration No. JKD-9394 and proceeded towards Kashmir University.
They were fully armed. At about 01.20 p.m., the accused persons saw the
car of the Vice- Chancellor coming out of the University campus towards the
Sadarbal Gate. The vehicle had to stop as the gate was being opened. As it came
out from the gate, some of the accused persons forcibly got inside the car of
the Vice-Chancellor brandishing their weapons. They overpowered the driver, the
Vice-Chancellor, his Personal Secretary and Jamadar, Malook Khan. The vehicle
of the Vice-Chancellor was driven towards the Sadarbal side followed by accused
Javed Shala and Mushtaq Sheikh in the red Maruti van.
2.5
After travelling some distance, the said vehicle was stopped whereafter the
accused persons forced the Vice-Chancellor and his Personal Secretary to come
out of the car. The Vice-Chancellor and his Personal Secretary were thereafter
taken to the red Maruti van. Subsequently the two kidnapped persons were taken
to different locations and ultimately were taken to the residence of Mohd.
Sadiq Rather at Natipura. From there the two kidnapped persons were shifted to
the house of accused Shabir where they were kept confined.
2.6
Accused Hilal Beg claimed responsibility for the abduction of Dr.
Mushir-ul-Haq, the Vice- Chancellor, and his Personal Secretary Abdul
Gani Zargar. In this connection, accused Hilal Beg issued a press release.
2.7
As the Government did not comply with their demand, accused Hilal Beg and his
associates convened a meeting on 09.04.1990 at 03.00 p.m. to decide the fate of
the hostages.
2.8
On 10.04.1990, the two hostages were taken to a field. Accused Salim Zargar
fired upon with an AK- 47 rifle causing multiple bullet injuries on their
persons as a result of which both of them died on the spot. Local police came
to the crime scene and recovered 9 empty cartridges of an AK-47 rifle but the
AK-47 rifle could not be recovered. On conclusion of investigation (after
transfer of the same to the CBI), charge sheet was filed implicating Hilal Beg,
Javed Ahmed Shala, Mushtaq Ahmed Sheikh, Mohd. Salim Zargar, Mohd. Hussain
Khan, Aftab Lach Khan, Mushtaq Ahmed Khan, Shabir Butt, Hilal Sheikh, Mohammad
Ashraf Butt and Gulam Qadir Mir as the accused for committing an offence under
Sections 120B read with Section 365 RPC. All the above, except Aftab Lach Khan,
were accused of committing an offence punishable under Sections
3(1) and 3(3) of the TADA Act. Accused Aftab Lach Khan was
charged with committing an offence under Section 3(3) of the TADA
Act. Additionally, Hilal Beg, Javed Ahmed Shala, Mushtaq Ahmed Sheikh,
Mohd. Salim Zargar, Mushtaq Ahmed Khan and Tahir Mir were charged
under Section 4(2) of the TADA Act. Accused Mohd. Salim Zargar was
further charged for committing an offence punishable under Section 302 RPC
while accused Hilal Beg was charged under Section 32 read with Section 34 of
the RPC.
3.
Vide order dated 22.04.2000 accused Abdul Aziz Dar, Gulam Qadir Mir, Shabir
Ahmed Bhat, Mohd. Sadiq Rather, Mushtaq Ahmed Khan and Mohd. Salim Zargar
(respondents in the present appeal) were charged for committing an offence
under Sections 118/302/368/365 of the RPC read with Sections 3/4 of
the TADA Act.
3.1
Accused denied their guilt and claimed to be tried. One of the accused persons
Tahir Ahmed Mir was discharged on the same day but proceedings were initiated
against the other accused persons. During pendency of the trial, accused Hilal
Beg passed away.
3.2
To prove its case, prosecution examined a number of witnesses. After
considering the evidence and other materials on record, the Special Court vide
the judgment and order dated 20.04.2009 acquitted the accused persons holding
that the prosecution could not prove the guilt of the accused beyond any
reasonable doubt. The Special Court discarded the ocular evidence of PW-2, PW-3
and PW-6 as well as the confessional statements of the accused which were held
to be inadmissible in evidence.
4.
Aggrieved thereby, appellant (State) has approached this Court by filing
criminal appeal under Section 19 of the TADA Act, being Crl. Appl.
No. 1681/2009. Crl. Appl. No. 1681/2009 was admitted by this Court vide the
order dated 28.08.2009.
5.
We have heard Mrs. Sonia Mathur, learned Senior Counsel for the appellant and
Ms. Kamini Jaiswal, learned counsel for the respondents.
6.
Learned Senior Counsel for the appellant- State submits that the Special Court
relied on a previous decision dated 21.12.2002 in the case of State
through CBI Vs. Mohd. Salim Zargar wherein the confessional statement
of Mohd. Salim Zargar was held to be inadmissible. In the present proceedings,
besides the confessional statement of Mohd. Salim Zargar, there were
confessional statements of two other accused persons, namely, Mushtaq Ahmed
Khan and Mohd. Sadiq Rather. However, the confessional statements of both
the accused persons were rejected due to the following reasons:
i) No statements in
the form of questions and answers were recorded by the Recording Officer to
conclude that his satisfaction was based on sound material;
ii) No record was
maintained by the Recoding Officer to ascertain if the confessional statement
was voluntary;
iii) No effort was
made to find out if any other Superintendent of Police was available to record
the confessional statements;
iv) No letter was
written by the Investigating Officer to the Recording Officer requesting the
later to record the confessional statements of the aforesaid two accused
persons;
v) It is not mentioned
that the Recording Officer had given time to the accused persons and at what
time the accused persons were produced before him;
vi) Confessions of the
accused persons were recorded on the same day when they were produced before
the Superintendent of Police;
6.1
Learned Senior Counsel for the appellant submits that for the aforesaid lacunae
the Special Court did not accept the confessional statements of Mushtaq Ahmed
Khan and Mohd. Sadiq Rather.
6.2
Referring to Section 15 of the TADA Act, learned Senior Counsel
submits that if a confessional statement is established as voluntary, truthful
and relates to the accused directly, it holds sufficient evidentiary value. In
such a case, no further corroboration is necessary. Conviction of the accused
can be based solely on such confession. In the present case, the confessions of
the accused persons were voluntary, true and those corroborated with each
other. Recording Officer Shri AK Suri, PW-12, had followed the procedure
mandated under Section 15 of the TADA Act and Rule 15 of the TADA
Rules. Therefore, the Special Court was not justified in rejecting the confessional
statements of the aforesaid two accused persons.
6.3
Adverting to the rejection of the confessional statement of Mohd. Salim Zargar,
learned Senior Counsel submits that the doctrine of issue estoppel cannot be
applied in the present case. Salim Zargar was acquitted in a different
proceeding vide the judgment and order dated 21.12.2002 which was not
challenged by CBI. Barring Salim Zargar, parties are different in both the
cases. Present trial had arisen out of a completely different incident i.e.
kidnapping of Dr. Mushir-ul-Haq, the Vice-Chancellor of Kashmir University, and
his Personal Secretary, Abdul Gani Zargar, from the Sadarbal Gate of the
University on 06.04.1990. Therefore, the Special Court fell in error in
rejecting the confessional statement of Salim Zargar relying on the doctrine of
issue estoppel.
6.4
In any case, in addition to the confessional statement of Salim Zargar, there
were confessions of two other accused persons, viz, Mushtaq Ahmed Khan and
Mohd. Sadiq Rather which were recorded by the Superintendent of Police on
14.08.1990 and 25.08.1990 respectively. In view of the joint trial of the
accused persons, confessions of the aforesaid two accused persons which were
made voluntarily and corroborated with each other should have been relied upon.
6.5
It is further submitted that confessions of the accused persons were recorded
in the year 1990 when there were no guidelines prescribed for recording of
statements under Section 15 of the TADA Act. Judgment in the case
of Kartar Singh Vs. State of Punjab[(1994) 3 SCC 569], came much later. Therefore, the procedure
prescribed in Kartar Singh (supra) could not have been followed in
the present case.
6.6
Learned Senior Counsel submits that Section 15 of the TADA Act
provides the substantive legal frame work for recording confessions while Rule
15 of the TADA Rules lays down the procedural safeguards necessary to uphold
the validity of such confessional statements. Section 15(2) of the
TADA Act should be read with Rule 15 of the TADA Rules. Notably, sub-rule 3(b)
of Rule 15 mandates the police officer recording a confession to append a
memorandum at the end of the confession. In the present case, Shri AK Suri,
PW-12, ensured before recording the confessional statements that the accused were
doing so voluntarily and they were duly warned about the legal consequences of
such confession. The accused signed every page of the statements and the
Recording Officer appended the mandatory memorandum confirming the voluntary
nature of the confessions. The certificates, duly signed and sealed, were
forwarded to the competent authority. Hence the issuance of the certificates
complied with Rule 15(3) of the TADA Rules reflecting the officer’s
satisfaction regarding the voluntariness of the confessions.
6.7 That apart, it is further submitted that
the confessional statement of Mohd. Salim Zargar was additionally recorded
under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Cr.PC)
which was duly exhibited during the trial.
6.8
Thus, the confessional statements of Mohd. Salim Zargar, Mushtaq Ahmed Khan and
Mohd. Sadiq Rather were recorded following the legal procedure mandated by the
statute. Therefore, the Special Court was not at all justified in discarding
the confessional statements of the abovenamed accused persons. On the basis of
such confessional statements, the guilt of the accused persons stood
conclusively established. In the circumstances, learned Senior Counsel submits
that the appeal may be allowed setting aside the impugned judgment of the
Special Court.
6.9
In support of her submissions, learned Senior Counsel has placed reliance on
the following decisions:
i) Kartar Singh (supra);
ii) Sharafat Hussain Abdul Rahaman
Shaikh Vs. State of Gujarat [(1996) 11 SCC 62];
iii) SN Dube Vs. NB Bhoir [(2000) 2 SCC 254];
iv) Ahmed Hussein Vali
Mohammed. Saiyed
Vs. State of Gujarat[(2009) 7 SCC 254];
v) Yakub Abdul Razak Memon Vs. State of Maharashtra[(2013) 13 SCC 1] ; and,
vi) Raja Vs.
State of Tamil Nadu[(2020) 5 SCC 118];
7.
Per contra, learned counsel for the respondents submits that Special Court had
acquitted all the accused persons as the only actionable evidence were the
alleged confessional statements of the three accused persons. In so far the
confessional statement of Mohd. Salim Zargar is concerned, the same was already
rejected by the Special Court vide the judgment and order dated 21.12.2002 in a
separate TADA proceeding. No appeal was preferred by the CBI against the said
acquittal order which was passed following rejection of the confessional
statement of Mohd. Salim Zargar. Thus, the said finding had become final. In
the present proceeding, prosecution relied upon the same confessional statement
which was rightly rejected by the Special Court.
7.1
Learned counsel submits that trial in this case took more than 19 years to
complete as the prosecution was very tardy in producing the
witnesses before the Court while the accused persons remained in custody
as under-trial prisoners. The alleged confessional statements were recorded by
one Shri AK Suri, PW-12, who was holding the post of Superintendent of Police,
CBI at the relevant point of time and was also supervising the investigation of
the present case. Prosecution could not produce any authorization whereby PW-12
was authorized to record the confessional statements. After due consideration,
the Special Court discarded the confessional statements of all the three
accused persons. While the confessional statement of Mohd. Salim Zargar was
rejected because the same confessional statement was relied upon by the
prosecution in another trial where it was rejected, in so far the confessional
statements of Mushtaq Ahmed and Mohd. Sadiq Rather are concerned, the Special
Court expressed serious doubt about the voluntary nature of such confessions.
7.2
Elaborating further, learned counsel for the respondents submits that PW-12 did
not testify as to how the accused persons had appeared before him on their own.
He was also silent about the production of the accused persons before him and
also in respect of any request regarding recording of such confessional
statements made to him by the Investigating Officer. The Investigating Officer
deposed that he had never arrested the accused persons and had not even
produced the accused before the Court. He further stated that he did not ask
the SP, CBI (Shri AK Suri) to come for recording the statement of the accused
persons. There is no record to show from whose custody the accused persons were
produced before Shri Suri when the alleged confessions were recorded or whether
the accused persons made any desire in writing or orally to get their
confessions recorded. The testimony of Shri AK Suri also shows that no
questions were put to and answers sought from the accused persons before
recording their confessions. There is no contemporaneous record to show that
questions were put to the accused persons by Shri AK Suri before the statements
were recorded. No satisfaction was recorded that the confessional statements
were made voluntarily and were truthful. Admittedly, the confessional
statements were recorded under compelling circumstances in places which were
fortified and heavily guarded, such as, BSF camp and Joint Interrogation
Centres.
7.3
Learned counsel for the respondents submits that it is not the case of the
prosecution that no other Superintendent of Police was available at the
relevant point of time and that only Shri AK Suri was available which
necessitated him to record the confessional statements. Learned counsel asserts
that Shri Suri was keen and overzealous to get the confessional statements
recorded by himself for more than one reason. There is nothing on record to
show from whose custody the accused persons were produced before Shri Suri for
recording of the confessional statements in the BSF camp and at the Joint
Interrogation Centres and at whose instance. There was no independent evidence
to support the prosecution case and, therefore, the only way the prosecution
could succeed in proving the guilt of the accused persons was to resort to the
draconian law for getting the confessions recorded by themselves.
7.4
Learned counsel for the respondents submits that no offence under the TADA
Act was made out or proved as against the respondents. It is evident that
the accused persons were subjected to harsh interrogation, treatment and
unlawful incarceration to make out a case of TADA but without any evidence.
Special Court rightly acquitted the respondents. There is no illegality or
perversity in the order of acquittal. No case is made out to reverse the order
of acquittal.
7.5
Learned counsel has relied upon the decisions of this Court in Kartar
Singh (supra), SN Dube (supra) and also in the case
of Raja (supra) which clearly lay down the proposition that the
guidelines prescribed by this Court for recording of confessional
statements under Section 15 of the TADA Act and Rule 15 of the
TADA Rules are mandatory in nature which have to be followed if such
confessions are to be relied upon. If the guidelines or conditions are not complied
with, such confessional statements cannot be relied upon to convict the
accused.
7.6
In the circumstances, learned counsel for the respondents submits that there is
no merit in the appeal which should, therefore, be dismissed.
8.
Submissions made by learned counsel for the parties have received the due
consideration of the Court.
9.
Prosecution presented PW-2, Ghulam Mohiuddin Khan, PW-3, Molu Khan, and PW-6,
Ghulam Nabi Dar, the driver, as the eyewitnesses. PW-2 and PW- 3 in their
evidence described the kidnappers as young men with moustaches but could not
identify them. PW-6 detailed how armed individuals hijacked the vehicle and
later transferred the kidnapped persons to another car but he could not
recognize the individuals. Therefore, evidence of the aforesaid witnesses are
of not much assistance to the prosecution.
10.
Though the medical and forensic evidence confirmed that both the deceased were
killed by bullets fired from AK-47 rifle, the weapon (AK-47 rifle) used in
the crime could not be recovered. In fact, PW-11 Shri Roop Singh, a Senior
Scientific Officer from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory, New Delhi
testified that the cartridges recovered and sent to him for forensic
examination were from a 7.62 mm AK-47 rifle. However, during cross-examination,
he admitted that he had not seen the AK-47 rifle from which the cartridges were
fired.
11.
It is evident that the aforesaid testimony of the prosecution witnesses coupled
with non-recovery of the weapon of offence seriously damaged the prosecution
case. Prosecution therefore relied entirely on the confessional statements of
Mohd. Salim Zargar, Mushtaq Ahmed Khan and Mohd. Sadiq Rather to prove the case
against the respondents.
12.
Before we deal with the admissibility or otherwise of the aforesaid
confessional statements, it would be apposite to analyse the relevant legal
provisions under the TADA Act and the TADA Rules dealing with
recording of confessional statements.
13. TADA
Act was a special legislation enacted to make special provisions for the
prevention of and for coping with terrorist and disruptive activities and
for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. Section
15 provides for certain confessions made to police officers to be taken
into consideration. Section 15 is as under:
15. Certain
confessions made to Police Officers to be taken into consideration.-
(1) Notwithstanding
anything in the Code or in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (1 of 1872),
but subject to the provisions of this section, a confession made by a person
before a police officer not lower in rank than a Superintendent of Police and
recorded by such police officer in writing or on any mechanical device like
cassettes, tapes or sound tracks from out of which sounds or images can be
reproduced, shall be admissible in the trial of such person or co-accused,
abettor or conspirator for an offence under this Act or rules made there under:
Provided that
co-accused, abettor or conspirator is charged and tried in the same case
together with the accused.
(2) The police officer
shall, before recording any confession under sub-section (1), explain to the
person making it that he is not bound to make a confession and that, if he does
so, it may be used as evidence against him and such police officer shall not
record any such confession unless, upon questioning the person making it, he
has reason to believe that it is being made voluntarily.
13.1
Sub-section (1) starts with a non-obstante clause. It says that notwithstanding
anything contained in the Cr.P.C. or in the Indian Evidence Act,
1872 (‘Evidence Act’ hereinafter) but subject to the provisions
of Section 15 of the TADA Act, a confession made by a person before a
police officer not lower in rank than a Superintendant of Police (SP) shall be
admissible in the trial of such person or that of co-accused, abettor or
conspirator for an offence under the TADA Act or under the TADA
Rules. The recording may be by such a police officer or on any mechanical
device, like, cassettes, tapes etc. Proviso to sub-section (1) says that the
confessional statement made under sub-section (1) shall be admissible with
regard to the co-accused, abettor or conspirator if they are charged and tried
in the same case together with the accused. Sub-section (2) of Section
15 mandates that before recording any confession under sub-section (1),
the police officer shall explain to the person making it that he is not bound
to make a confession but if he does so, it may be used as evidence against him.
Such a police officer shall not record any such confession unless upon
questioning the person making it, he has reason to believe that it is being
made voluntarily.
13.2
Thus, sum and substance of Section 15 of the TADA Act is that a
confessional statement made
voluntarily
by a person before a police officer not below the rank of SP shall be
admissible in the trial of such person for an offence under the TADA Act.
14.
Rule 15 of the TADA Rules lays down the procedure regarding recording of confession
made to police officers. Rule 15 reads thus:
15. Recording of
confession made to police officers.—
(1) A confession made by a person before a
police officer and recorded by such police officer under Section
15 of the Act shall invariably be recorded in the language in which such
confession is made and if that is not practicable, in the language used by such
police officer for official purposes or in the language of the Designated Court
and it shall form part of the record.
(2) The confession so
recorded shall be shown, read or played back to the person concerned and if he
does not understand the language in which it is recorded, it shall be
interpreted to him in a language which he understands and he shall be at
liberty to explain or add to his confession.
(3)
The confession shall, if it is in writing, be—
(a)
signed by the person who makes the confession; and
(b) by the police
officer who shall certify under his own hand that such confession was taken in
his presence and recorded by him and that the record contains a full and true
account of the confession made by the person and such police officer shall make
a memorandum at the end of the confession to the following effect:
‘I have explained to
(name) that he is not bound to make a confession and that, if he does so, any
confession he may make may be used as evidence against him and I believe that
this confession was voluntarily made. It was taken in my presence and hearing
and recorded by me and was read over to the person making it and admitted by
him to be correct, and it contains a full and true account of the statement
made by him.
Sd/-
Police Officer’ (4)
Where the confession is recorded on any mechanical device, the memorandum
referred to in sub-rule (3) insofar as it is applicable and a declaration made
by the person making the confession that the said confession recorded on the
mechanical device has been correctly recorded in his presence shall also be
recorded in the mechanical device at the end of the confession.
(5) Every confession recorded under the
said Section 15 shall be sent forthwith to the Chief Metropolitan
Magistrate or the Chief Judicial Magistrate having jurisdiction over the area
in which such confession has been recorded and such Magistrate shall forward
the recorded confession so received to the Designated Court which may take
cognizance of the offence.
14.1
While sub-rule (1) mandates that the confession under Section 15 of
the TADA Act should be recorded in the language in which the confession is
made, but if that is not practical, then it should be recorded in the language
used by such police officer for official purposes or in the language of the
designated court. In any case, the confessional statement shall form part of
the record.
14.2
As per sub-rule (2), the confession so recorded shall be shown, read or played
back to the person concerned. If he does not understand the language in which
it is recorded, it shall be interpreted to him in a language which he
understands. At that stage, the person making the confession shall be at
liberty to explain or add to his confession.
14.3
The requirement of sub-rule (3) is that the confession if it is in writing
shall be signed by the
person
who makes the confession as well as by the police officer. Additionally, the
police officer shall certify under his own hand that such confession was taken
in his presence and recorded by him. He shall also certify that the record
contains a full and true account of the confession made by the person. At the
end of the confession, the police officer is required to make a memorandum, the
substance of which is that the police officer had explained to the person
concerned that he is not bound to make a confession but if he does so, the same
may be used against him as evidence. The memorandum should contain a
certificate of the police officer that he believes that the confession was made
voluntarily in his presence and recorded by him; that it was read over to the
person concerned who admitted the same to be correct containing a full and true
account of the statement made by him.
14.4
Sub-rule (4) deals with a situation where the confession is recorded on any
mechanical device. Since in the present case, the confessional statements were
not recorded on any mechanical device, this provision may not have much
relevance.
14.5
Sub-rule (5) mandates that every confession recorded under Section
15 of the TADA Act shall be sent forthwith to the jurisdictional Chief
Judicial Magistrate or the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, as the case may
be, who shall forward the recorded confession so received to the designated
court (special court) which may take cognizance of the offence.
14.6
Thus, Rule 15 deals with the procedural aspect regarding recording of
confession made to police officers under Section 15.
15.
As noticed above, TADA Act was enacted by the Parliament to deal with
the menace of terrorism and related disruptive activities. It contained a
special provision in the form of Section 15 which permitted
confessional statement recorded by a police officer not below the rank of SP to
be admitted as evidence in the trial of the person making the confessional
statement or the trial of the co-accused, abettor or conspirator if they are
tried together in the same case as the person making the statement.
16.
In criminal jurisprudence, developed over a century, confessions made to a
police officer are inadmissible in evidence. Under Section 25 of the
Evidence Act, a confession made to a police officer by a person accused of an
offence shall not be proved against him. Power to record confessions is given
to a Judicial Magistrate. Strict and rigorous guidelines have been
laid down to record such judicial confessions under Section
164 Cr.P.C. Such safeguards are founded on the well- settled principle
that confession is an admission of guilt. Ordinarily, nobody would like to
admit his guilt as he is fully aware that the same would be used against him.
That apart, an accused has a constitutional and fundamental right against
testimonial compulsion. Therefore, Section 15 of the TADA Act completely
altered the fundamental rules of evidence.
17.
Vires of the TADA Act was challenged before the Supreme Court in Kartar
Singh (supra). A Constitution Bench of this Court while upholding the
validity of Section 15 of the TADA Act as well as the entirety of the
Act, however, laid down certain guidelines so as to ensure that confession
obtained in the pre- indictment interrogation by a police officer not lower in
rank than a Superintendent of Police is not tainted with any vice but is in
strict compliance with well-recognized and accepted aesthetic principles and
fundamental fairness. These guidelines are as follows:
263. However, we would
like to lay down following guidelines so as to ensure that the confession
obtained in the pre-indictment interrogation by a police officer not lower in
rank than a Superintendent of Police is not tainted with any vice but is in
strict conformity with the well-recognised and accepted aesthetic principles
and fundamental fairness:
(1) The confession
should be recorded in a free atmosphere in the same language in which the
person is examined and as narrated by him;
(2) The person from
whom a confession has been recorded under Section 15(1) of the Act,
should be produced before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate or the Chief
Judicial Magistrate to whom the confession is required to be sent under Rule
15(5) along with the original statement of confession, written or recorded on
mechanical device without unreasonable delay;
(3) The Chief
Metropolitan Magistrate or the Chief Judicial Magistrate should scrupulously
record the statement, if any, made by the accused so produced and get his
signature and in case of any complaint of torture, the person should be
directed to be produced for medical examination before a Medical Officer not lower
in rank than of an Assistant Civil Surgeon;
(4) Notwithstanding
anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, no police
officer below the rank of an Assistant Commissioner of Police in the
metropolitan cities and elsewhere of a Deputy Superintendent of Police or a
police officer of equivalent rank, should investigate any offence punishable
under this Act of 1987.
This is necessary in view of the drastic
provisions of this Act. More so when the Prevention of Corruption Act,
1988 under Section 17 and the Immoral Traffic Prevention
Act, 1956 under Section 13, authorise only a police officer of a
specified rank to investigate the offences under those specified Acts.
(5) The police officer
if he is seeking the custody of any person for pre-indictment or pre-trial
interrogation from the judicial custody, must file an affidavit sworn by him
explaining the reason not only for such custody but also for the delay, if any,
in seeking the police custody;
(6) In case, the
person, taken for interrogation, on receipt of the statutory warning that he is
not bound to make a confession and that if he does so, the said statement may
be used against him as evidence, asserts his right to silence, the police officer
must respect his right of assertion without making any compulsion to give a
statement of disclosure;
The Central Government
may take note of these guidelines and incorporate them by appropriate
amendments in the Act and the Rules.
17.1
This Court further clarified that though it is entirely for the court trying
the offence to decide the question of admissibility or reliability of a
confession in its judicial wisdom strictly adhering to the law, it
must satisfy itself that there was no trap, no track and no importune
seeking of evidence during the phase of custodial interrogation. The court
should also satisfy itself that all the required conditions are fulfilled. This
Court further emphasized that in order to ensure a higher level of scrutiny
vis-a-vis applicability of TADA Act there should be a screening
committee or a review committee both at the central level as well as at the
state level.
18.
In the case of SN Dube (supra), a two Judge Bench of this Court negatived the
contention of the defence that a confession under Section 15 of the
TADA Act should be recorded in two phases i.e. the preliminary part containing
the record of how and for what purpose the person was forwarded and the
questions and answers put to him for ascertaining his voluntary willingness to
make a confession even after being told that the confession may be used against
him as a piece of evidence; and the second part which contains the actual
confessional statement. Contention of the defence was that it is the second
part which has to be regarded as the actual confessional statement and not the
preliminary part. Therefore, the obligation to explain and ascertain is to be
performed while recording the real confessional part. Such explanation and
ascertainment done earlier when the preliminary part was recorded cannot
be regarded as proper compliance with the requirement of Rule 15(2). The police
officer must explain and give the statutory warning before the actual
confessional part starts and it is at that point of time that he has to
ascertain by questioning the person making it that he is making the confession
voluntarily.
18.1
The aforesaid contention of the defence was repelled by this Court in the
following manner:
30. ...Therefore, the
contention that when the confession is recorded in two parts, only the second
part can be regarded as the confession and while recording the second part the
police officer should give the statutory warning and then ascertain if the
person concerned is making it voluntarily, cannot be accepted. The requirement
of law is that before recording the confession the police officer should
ascertain by putting questions to the maker of it that he is making the
confession voluntarily and he should also explain to him that he is not bound
to make the confession and that if he makes it that can be used against him as
evidence. In this case DSP Shinde had put questions to each of the accused who
was brought before him to ascertain if he was willing to make a confession
voluntarily and had also given the statutory warning to him on that day. Even
after the accused had shown his willingness to make a confession Shinde had
given him time not exceeding 48 hours to think over his readiness to make
the confession. When the accused was brought to him again he had again
ascertained if he was still ready and willing to give a statement. He had also
asked him if he was making it under any pressure or coercion or threat. Only
after the accused had replied in the negative he had told the accused to say
whatever he wanted to state about Suresh Dube's murder. In view of these facts
and circumstances it is not possible to uphold the finding recorded by the
trial court and to accept the contention raised on behalf of the respondents
that while recording the confessions of the accused Shinde had committed a
breach of Rule 15(2).
19.
Shiraj Ahmed (supra) is a case where a two Judge Bench of this Court while
considering the admissibility of a confession recorded under Section
15 of the TADA Act referred to the exceptional nature of Section
15 and the guidelines laid down by the Constitution Bench in Kartar
Singh (supra). This Court held that any confession made in defiance of the
safeguards would not be relied upon by a court. This Court held thus:
50. From the
aforementioned statements of law enunciated by this Court, it is apparent that
considerable amount of confidence has been reposed in the senior police
officials for recording the confessional statement. A confessional statement to
police is not admissible under the general law connected with administration of
criminal justice, which is made admissible under the TADA Act, and,
therefore, strict compliance with the procedure prescribed under Section
15 of the TADA Act read with Rule 15 of the TADA Rules is expected to be
followed. Any confession made in defiance of the safeguards provided therein,
would not be relied upon by a court. The confession should be made voluntarily
without there being any force or pressure put on, or allurement or inducement
given to, a person who is voluntarily admitting his guilt. Under Section
25 of the Evidence Act, a confession made to the police officer is not
admissible in evidence to be considered by a court. Although there are certain
exceptions in the preceding provisions, but the fact remains that as a rule a
confession made to the police officer is not made admissible under
the Evidence Act.
The idea appears to be
that any statement made to a police officer who is connected with the
investigation and prosecution of a person, would not be taken as evidence.
Under Section 15 of the TADA Act, if a confession made by the accused
to a police officer not lower than the rank of Superintendent of Police is made
admissible, it would still be a confession made to the police officer, and thus
inbuilt safeguards have been provided under Section 15 of the TADA
Act read with Rule 15 of the TADA Rules so as to lend credence to the confession
made to the police officer, it being voluntary and without any force or
pressure and allurement or inducement. The Constitution Bench of this Court in
Kartar Singh has also laid down the condition to establish the voluntary nature
of the confession.
x x x x x x x x x x
52. From a bare
reading of the above certificate, it is clear that it is necessary for the
police officer to certify that he has explained to the accused that the accused
is not bound to make a confession and if he does so such confession may be used
as evidence against him. It is further required to be recorded that he believes
that the confession was voluntarily made. He has to record that the
confessional statement has been taken in his presence and heard and recorded by
him. The confessional statement should be read over to the person making it and
admitted by him to be correct and it should be certified that it contains a
full and true account of the statement made by the accused. The certificate
which is required to be given by the police officer is not a mere formality,
but it is for the purposes of ascertaining that the police officer has recorded
the confession keeping in mind and being fully aware of the fact that the
confession recorded by him is a voluntary confession and with the information
available to the accused that he is not bound to make such confession and if he
does so it will be used as evidence against him. A duty is cast on the police
officer who is to record the confession to bring at the relevant time these
facts to the notice of the person whose confession is going to be
recorded.
20. In
the case of Ajit Singh (supra), a two Judge Bench of this Court again
considered admissibility of confessions recorded under Section 15 of
the TADA Act. Observing the draconian nature of Section 15, this Court
emphasized that TADA Act is a harsh penal statute and its provisions must,
therefore, be construed in that perspective. Referring to an earlier decision,
this Court observed that Section 15 is a clear departure from the
general law that a statement made to a police officer is not permissible in
evidence. Adverting to Kartar Singh (supra), it was observed that the
Constitution Bench while upholding the vires of Section 15 repeatedly
dealt on the severity of the said provision as one laying down altogether a new
procedure and emphasized that provisions of the TADA Act and the TADA
Rules must be scrupulously observed with particular reference to the provisions
relating to recording of confessions. In the facts of that case, it was noticed
that 15 to 30 minutes time was given to the accused for reflection before the
actual confessions were recorded. This Court held that sufficient cooling off
time was not given to the accused. It was also found that there was no evidence
on record that the confessional statements were submitted to the concerned
Magistrate. In the circumstances, this Court observed as under:
13. Applying the
aforesaid principles to the facts of the present case, we are of the opinion
that adequate time had not been given to any of the accused as they had been in
police custody for almost 45 days in each case We also observe that there is no
evidence on record to suggest that the special report envisaged under sub-rule
(5) of Rule 15 had been submitted to the Magistrate. The confessions cannot,
therefore, be taken into account for any purpose.
21.
Having surveyed the law on the subject, let us now advert to the three
confessional statements.
22.
The confessional statement of Mohd. Salim Zargar (respondent No. 1) was
recorded on 16.09.1990 (sic) by PW-12, Shri AK Suri, SP. The following
memorandum was appended to the confessional statement:
The person named above
who is presently lodged in BSF camp at Srinagar voluntarily expressed his
willingness before me to make a clean-breast of his guilt. It was explained to
him that he is not bound to make any confession and that if he does so, it may
be used against him as evidence. Even after this he is willing to make a
confession of his guilt. On further questioning him I have satisfied
myself that he is making the confession voluntarily.
Sd/
16.09.90
(A.K.
SURI) SUPTD OF POLICE
CBI/SIC-U,
NEW DELHI.
22.1
From the above, it is seen that respondent No. 1 was lodged in a BSF camp at
Srinagar where his confession was recorded. But there is no mention where the
confession was recorded. Further, the time when the confession was recorded was
not mentioned. PW-12 also did not mention whether he had afforded any time to
respondent No. 1 to reflect before making the confession which is most crucial.
This statement is as vague as it can be. Thus, there is clear departure from
the norms which renders the confession highly suspect.
22.2
The record does not contain any statement in the form of questions and answers
wherefrom it could be deciphered that PW-12 had reason to believe that
respondent No. 1 was making the confession voluntarily. Further, in his
evidence PW-12 stated that he was posted as SP, CBI in New Delhi. He was on a
visit to Srinagar on 06.08.1990 when respondent No. 1 was produced before him.
Confessional statement of respondent No. 1 was recorded on the same day i.e. on
06.08.1990 at the BSF camp. It is thus apparent that since the confession was
recorded on the same day, hardly any or no time for reflection was given
which has vitiated the said confessional statement. There is one more aspect
which needs to be noted. The certificate appended to the confessional statement
is dated 16.09.1990 whereas PW-12 in his evidence stated that he had recorded
the confession of respondent No. 1 on 06.08.1990. This is again a grave
discrepancy.
22.3
It may be mentioned that this very confessional statement of respondent No. 1
was rejected by the Special Court in a prior case concerning the killing of one
BK Ganju (File No. 6/CH, CBI Vs. Mohd. Salim Zargar, decision dated 21.12.2002)
where the said confessional statement was deemed inadmissible and unreliable.
23.
This Court in the case of Ravinder Singh Vs. Sukhbir Singh[(2013) 9 SCC 245] , examined the
principle of issue estoppel. That was a case arising out of a prayer for
quashing of criminal proceedings under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled
Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. This Court explained the principle
of issue estoppel in the following manner:
25. The principle of
issue estoppel is also known as “cause of action estoppel” and the same is
different from the principle of double jeopardy or autrefois acquit, as
embodied in Section 300 CrPC. This principle applies where an issue
of fact has been tried by a competent court on a former occasion, and a finding
has been reached in favour of an accused. Such a finding would then constitute
an estoppel, or res judicata against the prosecution but would not operate as a
bar to the trial and conviction of the accused, for a different or distinct
offence. It would only preclude the reception of evidence that will disturb
that finding of fact already recorded when the accused is tried subsequently,
even for a different offence, which might be permitted by Section
300(2) CrPC. Thus, the rule of issue estoppel prevents re-litigation of an
issue which has been determined in a criminal trial between the parties...
24.
Therefore, applying the aforesaid principle the confessional statement of
respondent No. 1 could not have been relied upon by the prosecution and was
rightly rejected by the Special Court. Acceptance of the same confessional
statement of respondent No.1 would disturb the finding of fact already recorded
in the previous criminal trial relating to the killing of one B.K.
Ganju. In any case, the said statement is clearly vitiated by
non-compliance with the procedural safeguards provided under Rule 15 and
enumerated in Kartar Singh (supra).
25.
This brings us to the confessional statements of respondent No.2, Mushtaq Ahmed
Khan, and respondent No. 6, Mohd. Sadiq Rather. While the confessional
statement of Mushtaq Ahmed Khan was recorded on 14.08.1990, that of Mohd. Sadiq
Rather on 25.08.1990. Confessional statements of the above two respondents were
recorded in the same manner as the confessional statement of respondent No.1;
the only difference being that statement of respondent No. 2 was recorded at
the Joint Interrogation Centre (JIC), Srinagar, whereas statement of respondent
No. 6 was recorded at JIC, Kot Bhalwal, Jammu. The memorandum appended to their
confessional statements did not contain the time of recording of confession and
from where they were produced; and also as to whether any time was given to the
said respondents for reflection before recording of the confessional
statements. This is a most crucial omission which has completely vitiated the
confessional statements. That apart, no statements in the form of questions and
answers were recorded by PW-12 to ascertain the voluntary nature of the
confessional statements made by respondent Nos. 2 and 6. In addition to the above,
nothing has been placed on record to show any authorization to PW-12 to
record the confessional statements of the above respondents.
25.1
PW-12 in his evidence deposed that he was on a visit to Srinagar on 14.08.1990
when respondent No. 2 was produced before him in the JIC and he had recorded
the confession of respondent No. 2 on that day itself. Similarly, PW-12 stated
that he was on a visit to Jammu on 25.08.1990 when respondent No. 6 was
produced before him in the JIC where he had recorded the confession of
respondent No. 6 on that day itself. Therefore, it is evident that since the
confessional statements of the above two respondents were recorded on the same
day of production, hardly any or no time was given to them for reflection which
has completely vitiated the said two confessional statements.
26. Kartar
Singh (supra) says that confession should be recorded in a free
atmosphere. Recording of confessional statements in a heavily guarded BSF camp
or in a JIC where the atmosphere for an accused would generally be daunting and
overbearing cannot be said to be in a free atmosphere. It has come on record
that the confessional statements so recorded were not accepted by the Court of
Chief Judicial Magistrate whereafter those were sent directly to the Special
Court which again is an infraction of the statute.
27.
The Legislature had reposed great faith in the fairness and uprightness of the
higher police officials in the rank of SP and above while conferring the
drastic power of recording confessional statements of the accused persons upon
them making the same admissible in evidence subject to fulfillment of the
procedural safeguards. But we are afraid, in so far the present case is
concerned, the procedural safeguards were given a complete go-bye. The Special
Court has stopped short of observing that it was a case of abuse of power and
authority. It is indeed a sad reflection as to how investigation and trial
unfolded in this case where truth and justice, both for the victims and the
accused, remained elusive. It is not for nothing that such draconian provisions
have since been repealed. We say this and no more.
28.
Thus, in view of the discussions made above, we do not find any error or
infirmity in the view taken by the Special Court in acquitting the respondents.
This is not even a case of plausible view. No other view is possible.
Consequently, there is no merit in the criminal appeal which is accordingly
dismissed.
CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 1770 OF 2009
29.
This appeal under Section 19 of the TADA Act by the State (CBI)
assails the judgment and order dated 20.04.2009 passed by the Special Court
in CBI Case No. RC 6(S)/1990 acquitting the respondents for the
offences under Section 3(1) of the TADA Act read with Sections 120B,
302, 368 and 364 of the RPC.
30.
This Court vide the order dated 11.09.2009 had admitted the instant criminal
appeal and directed listing of the same with Criminal Appeal No. 1681 of 2009.
However, Criminal Appeal No. 1770 of 2009 (State Vs. Tahir Ahmed Mir and Anr.)
was dismissed by this Court vide the order dated 04.12.2023 for non-
prosecution qua respondent No. 1.
31.
This criminal appeal arises out of the incident relating to kidnapping and
subsequent murder of Shri H.L. Khera, the then General Manager, HMT Watch
Factory, Srinagar allegedly by the respondents after entering into a criminal
conspiracy to strike terror in the minds of the general public and thereby to
compel the Government to release their associates.
32.
Like the previous criminal appeal, here also the weapon of assault was not
recovered. That apart,
the
eyewitnesses deposed that the respondents who were produced in court were not
the accused persons. Ultimately, the entire prosecution case centered around
the confessional statement of Mohd. Salim Zargar (respondent No. 2) recorded by
Shri A.K. Suri (PW-3 here) which we have already rejected in Criminal Appeal
No. 1681/2009.
33.
For the reasons stated while dismissing Criminal Appeal No. 1681 of 2009, the
present criminal appeal also fails and is accordingly dismissed.
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