R. KUPPUSAMY versus STATE REP. BY INSPECTOR OF POLICE, AMBEILIGAI

Citation: [2013] 4 S.C.R. 136 · Decided: 19-02-2013 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: T.S. THAKUR · Disposal: Dismissed

Judgment (excerpt)

A 
B 
[2013] 4 S.C.R. 136 
R. KUPPUSAMY 
v. 
STATE REP. BY INSPECTOR OF POLICE, AMBEILIGAI 
(Criminal Appeal No.1706 of 2008) 
FEBRUARY 19, 2013 
[T.S. THAKUR AND SUDHANSU 
JYOTI MUKHOPADHAYA, JJ.] 
Penal Code, 1860 - s. 302 - Murder - Life imprisonment 
C - Homicidal death of 10 month old girl child due to drowning 
- Prosecution case that the child had been thrown into the well 
by her father (appellant) as there were problems between the 
appellant and his parents regarding the child being unlucky 
for the family - Conviction of appellant by Courts below on 
D basis of extra-judicial confessional statement made by him 
before PW1 - Justification of - Held: Justified - Extra judicial 
confessional statement attributed to appellant found to be 
voluntary, truthful and unaffected by any inducement that 
could render it unreliable or unworthy of credence - It was 
E made by appellant to PW1 almost immediately after 
commission of the crime -
Corroboration by medical 
evidence and deposition of other witnesses - Deposition of 
PW1 inspires confidence in the absence of any material 
deficiency in the same either in terms of what has been 
F recorded by him or the procedure that he followed while doing 
so - More importantly, no suggestion that PW1 had any 
animosity or other reason which would impel him to go so far 
as to involve the appellant in a case of murder - Courts below 
correctly appreciated the deposition of PW1 and found him 
to be reliable. 
G 
Evidence - Extra judicial confession - Appreciation of -
Held: An extra judicial confession is capable of sustaining a 
conviction provided the same is not made under any 
inducement, is voluntary and truthful - Whether or not these 
H 
136 
----
R. KUPPUSAMY v. STATE REP. BY INSPECTOR OF 137 
POLICE, AMBEILIGAI 
attributes of an extra judicial confession are satisfied in a A 
given case will, however, depend upon the facts and 
circumstances of each case -It is eventually the satisfaction 
of the Court as to the reliability of the confession, keeping in 
view the circumstances in which the same is made, the person 
_ to whom it is alleged to have been made and the 
B 
corroboration, if any, available as to the truth of such a 
confession that will determine whether the extra judicial 
confession ought to be made a basis for holding the accused 
guilty. 
Evidence - Medical evidence - Appreciation of - On c 
facts, the medical evidence adduced suggests that death of 
the deceased child was caused by drowning - Congestion of 
his lungs implies presence of excess fluids in the lungs, a 
sign suggesting that the child would have inhaled excess fluid 0 
while in water - Presence of watery fluid even in stomach of 
the deceased an important sign of death by drowning - It is 
almost impossible for water to get into the stomach, if a body 
is submerged after death - Absence of any other marks on 
the body of the child also supports the prosecution case that 
the child had indeed died of drowning. 
E 
The prosecution case was that the appellant had 
murdered his ten month old daughter by throwing her in 
a well (resulting in the child's death by drowning}, as 
there were problems between the appellant and his 
F 
parents regarding the child being unlucky for the family. 
The appellant had allegedly made an extra-judicial 
confession before PW1, the Village Administrative Officer 
(VAO). Placing reliance upon the said extra-judicial 
confession, the Courts below convicted the appellant G 
under Section 302 IPC and sentenced him to life 
imprisonment. 
In the instant appeal, the conviction of the appellant 
was challenged on grounds 1) that making of the 
confessional statement was, in the facts and 
H 
138 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS 
[2013] 4 S.C.R. 
A circumstances of the case, not only improbable but 
wholly unsupported and uncorroborated by any 
independent evidence; and 2) that extra judicial 
confession by its ve:ry nature is a wea'k type of evidence 
which ought to be corroborated by independent evidence 
B in order to support a conviction of the maker of the 
confession, and no such corroboration was forthcoming 
in the instant case. 
Dismissing the appeal, the Court 
C 
HELD: 1. An extra judicial confession is capable of 
sustaining a conviction provided the same is not made 
under any inducement, is-voluntary and truthful. Whether 
or not these attributes of an extra judicial confession are 
satisfied in a given case will, however, depend upon the 
D facts and circumstanc

Excerpt shown. Read the full judgment & AI analysis in Lexace.