Hostile Witness Testimony Can Still Be Relied On: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court has reiterated that the testimony of a hostile witness does not become wholly inadmissible. A court may rely on those parts of the deposition that it finds credible and consistent with the prosecution’s case. The Court made this observation while deciding a criminal appeal against conviction.
The case arose from a conviction challenge. The prosecution had partly relied on witnesses who turned hostile during trial.
The main issue was whether such testimony could still support the conviction.
The appellant argued that once key witnesses turned hostile, their evidence lost all evidentiary value. On that basis, the appellant contended that the Court could not use such testimony to support the prosecution’s case.
The appellant also argued that reliance on hostile witness testimony would be unsafe and contrary to settled criminal law principles.
The State argued that the legal position is already settled. It said the testimony of a hostile witness does not disappear from the record.
According to the State, the Court may rely on those parts of the testimony that support the prosecution’s version, especially when other material evidence corroborates them.
The Supreme Court reaffirmed that the evidence of a hostile witness does not stand completely excluded.
It held that a court may accept a hostile witness’s testimony in part if the relevant portion appears trustworthy. It also clarified that merely declaring a witness hostile does not make the entire deposition unreliable.
The Court said judges may rely on those portions of the testimony that align with the prosecution’s case and find support in other evidence on record.
The Court stressed that judges must carefully assess the evidentiary value of such testimony. Where any part appears credible, the Court may use that part to support the prosecution’s case.
The Court then examined the record. It found that some portions of the hostile witnesses’ testimony matched the other evidence and could be safely relied upon.
On that basis, the Supreme Court upheld the approach of relying on the credible portions of hostile witness testimony. It therefore declined to interfere with the findings based on such evidence.
