• Need Advice regarding oath certificate and evidence

Respected lawyers, Greetings !

I am very much puzzled due to MACT case filed by me and therefore I want your kind advice. My sincere apologies to lawyers as the problem surfaced due wrong advice of my lawyer which I came to know at later stage:

I met with a severe accident in May 2015 while I was riding a byke and a car hit me. After hitting, driver run away but car number was noted by PCR. After that FIR was logged against this car. Driver was arrested and a criminal trial is being run in court.

Since May 2015, till Dec 2015, I was under treatment and had gone through surgery. As I was working in a MNC company, for livelihood, I requested and my company allowed me working from home. Since June 2015 till Jan 2016, I worked from home and my salary got credited in my account every month. 

In 2016, I met with a lawyer and I told him the whole story WITHOUT HIDING any single bit of information. Later, a permanent disability certificate (5% disability) got issued by govt hospital doctor.

Before filing MACT case, I agreed to pay my lawyer a 20% of the settled amount as his fee. He started preparing papers based. He advised me to claim the salary amount of 8 months (i.e. from June 2015 till Jan 2016) as well by showing to court that its a loss as I was unable to join office. I countered him that since I got my salary by working from home and at later stage, I wont be able to prove that I din't get salary of the duration June 15- Jan 16. Also, I asked him that what will happen if I am unable to prove that I dint get my salary of this period.

He replied that in 15 years of his experience he has seen that if someone is unable to prove his salary part, judge will either ignore that component from claimed amount or he will award Minimum wages given to labors on per month basis. He assured tha wont be a problem. He suggested that when judge will ask, you can reply to judge that I can't call my office representative as my job would be at risk or so.
Trusting him, in oath commissioner affidavit (submitted in 2017), I stated that my salary loss was Rs (Actual Salary x 8 months June to Jan 2016). Please note that THIS WAS THE ONLY THING IN AFFIDAVIT WHICH WAS INCORRECT. 

Later, judge asked me to call company person as witness and my reply was same as above. From my part, I didn't produce any evidence to prove my salary loss. But in recent hearings, judges sent notice to my office to appear and accountant of my office submitted all salary related documents and recorded his statement.
This is now the problem for me as it is contradicting my oath affidavit statement related to salary loss of 8 months which I claimed. I came to know about the consequences of this offence (false oath) recently which I was not aware of. There is final argument in 5 days where I will be questioned.

Kindly suggest 
1.	What I should do now
2.	What should be my reply to judge
3.	What could be consequences
4.	Is it better to negotiate at this stage

Thanks
Asked 6 years ago in Civil Law

2 answers received in 30 minutes.

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10 Answers

You have made false statement t on oath

2) you can be prosecuted for perjury under section 340 of cr pc read with section 191, 193 of IPC

3) Under section 191 of IPC, an affidavit is evidence and a person swearing to a false affidavit is guilty of perjury punishable under Section 193 IPC which prescribes the period of punishment as seven years imprisonment. However, action against making a false statement should be initiated during the trial itself, and not at the end of it which may take a long time

4) 2004)7 SCC 166 para 13

“As a general rule, suppression of a material fact by a litigant disqualifies such litigant from obtaining any relief. This rule has been evolved out of the need of the Courts to deter a litigant from abusing the process of Court by deceiving it. But the suppressed fact must be a material one in the sense that had it not been suppressed it would have had an effect on the merits of the case…”

5) with draw your application for compensation filed before MACT

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
94695 Answers
7527 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

If u upload ur cross examination then it better to me advice u. Without cross examination it is unable to me suggest u anything.

Arun Kasana
Advocate, Delhi
32 Answers

Not rated

Dear Sir, it will applicable perjury offence, but you don't worry, your affidavit statement and office documents bring before only tally purpose to determine the compensation, if not tallied compensation may reduce only. All the best.

C. V. Jadhav
Advocate, Bangalore
545 Answers
18 Consultations

4.7 on 5.0

1. The damage has been done and it can not be reversed.

2. First change this lawyer and engage a new advocate to argue the case so fresh idea infuse the case to tide this over on your favour.

3. In most cases the court would avoid giving the part of salary which you claimed to have been lost. Just pray that the court does not initiate proceeding of perjury for giving false statement.

4. If the court does not initiate perjury proceeding the consider yourself to be plain lucky and remain satisfied with whatever you get from the court as compensation.

Devajyoti Barman
Advocate, Kolkata
22816 Answers
488 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Write a letter to your lawyer as suggested by you i have done such kindly help and give a way to get out of it

Aveek Bose
Advocate, Kolkata
1222 Answers
9 Consultations

4.7 on 5.0

Dear Sir,

Nothing to worry. The court always acts as neutral. It never raise any complaint against you suo motto. If there is no complaint by any other party then you will not get any trouble. Secondly, it is in fact misinterpretation of nature of job that in between “physically working from the office” and “working from home”. You can argue that you are prevented to go to office due accident as such you are claiming the salary which in fact you never get. What you have got is only a salary which you put other intelligence and body parts to earn your livelihood. Thirdly, even now you can file additional affidavit or modified affidavit saying that you are claiming such salary on the said grounds. It is the discretionary for the court either to accept your contention or to reject. It does not attract any penal provision of law. Law can be interpreted in many ways thus your have interpreted the word “salary” and restricted it to only that part of salary which paid to the employee if such employee done the work as previously by going to the office physical. Otherwise agreement between you and your employer does not come into the way. Whatever work you have done from your home is only consultancy to the company. It was paid on and above salary and actual salary was never paid to you. Be sure if the court not accepts your contention it may reject your claim but it could not raise any penal complaint against you.

Kishan Dutt Kalaskar
Advocate, Bangalore
6136 Answers
487 Consultations

4.8 on 5.0

The court can reject your claim based on this affidavit and reduce your compensation amount not accepting the loss of salary court will not take action against you it will reject your claim. Though there can be a case the opposite party may if finds out can initiate proceedings against you. Also this can be contented before court that the agreement between you and employer was different amount for working from home you did not get your actual salary and benifits.

Further it is on court to accept or rejection your contentions donot worry court shall either decrease the compensation amount or in worst case reject the entire compensation claim it won't imitate any such proceedings.

Shubham Jhajharia
Advocate, Ahmedabad
25514 Answers
179 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Dear Client,

This is usual practice in MACT claims, nothing to panic, court will decide only quantum of compensation and will ignore the rest.

1. What I should do now -- Nothing, Advocate will do whatever

2. What should be my reply to judge -- Y judge will ask, u advocate is there, don`t attend the hearing.

3. What could be consequences

4. Is it better to negotiate at this stage

Yogendra Singh Rajawat
Advocate, Jaipur
22630 Answers
31 Consultations

4.4 on 5.0

Since you have already committed, you may remain silent about this and await the judgment.

Dont give any reply, your lawyer will take care on this.

Wait for the court to initiate any action suo motu.

No negotiations

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
84896 Answers
2190 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

You have lied on oath in your case. It's perjury. You can claim that it was inadvertently submitted and there is no deliberate act of supression of facts. Else you need to negotiate and settle the case with opponents. It is an offence to lie on oath in Court

Prashant Nayak
Advocate, Mumbai
31930 Answers
179 Consultations

4.1 on 5.0

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