- Signed statement made to police has not legal value. If is taken under Section 161, it cannot be signed, if it is confession under Section 164 it has to be made before If it is confession made to police by accused under Section 25 Indian Evidence Act, 1872 without compliance of Section 27, it not admissible in Court. You can seek production of notarized document from Notary through court as he maintains record of all notaries done by him.
- You can use the notarized document against them but not the statement made to police.
- The statement given to police cannot be used against them and it cannot be produced unless it is made record in complaint by police.
- You have option of filing criminal complaint against them in the Court of Magistrate for cheating as police are not taking any acquisition on your complaint.
Statement before police, can I use it as evidence
We had filed a F.I.R against person A and B with some money lending sections. We later requested police by way of formal application to include section of forgery and cheating and to add person X and Y's name into the F.I.R / Chargesheet and make them accused for the forgery and cheating. Now, Police in connivance with all the accuseds, didn't enquire into the cheating and forgery aspect of the complaint, called in X and Y, where X is a lawyer, took their statement with their sign on them, the statement clearly denies charges and mentioned some facts, Police let the X and Y go, and filed chargesheet against person A and B without cheating and forgery sections. Now, I have come to know about a fact which is that they have made a document in connivance with a notary and if I am able to acquire that document, it will prove that they were lying in their statement they made before Police. My questions are: 1) If I recover that document from the notary which will prove the guilt of X and Y along with A and B and would amount to cheating and forgery, what is the value of the statement made to Police with their signature on it? 2) Can I use it in court to prove they were lying? Would court accept it? And negative inference may be drawn based on it? 3) Can this be used as evidence against them since it was not a confession at all, rather denial of charges before Police and for which they were not prosecuted? Please note they were not formally charged, police just took their statement due to my formal application to include their name in FIR/Chargesheet. 4) I doubt they made me sign few documents before notary which I need to recover, do I have a right to ask Notary just on my own to handover those documents signed by me along with his notarial register? Notary is in connivance with accused, what if he refuses to handover the documents or show me a notarial register? What options do I have to get those documents from notary? Can he destroy those documents? Please provide elaborated answers, I may hire one of you for the case further.
Asked 4 years ago in Criminal Law
Religion: Hindu
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4 Answers
1. You first obtain that document which you rely upon.
Or you may wait for the police to file a charge sheet, you can then file a petition under section 173(8) cr.p.c. seeking for reinvestigation of the case by a different investigation officer based on your findings .
2. Read the above answer.
3. Read the answer at first above.
4. Notary is not a custodian of any document produced before him for attestation or notarisation, hence you cannot get any such thing from notary public.
It is not mandatory for notary to preserve copy of the document notarized by him or her. You can ask and get register number of the documents notarized by the Notary and can also bring the notary to the witness box of the Court in the criminal trial. Notary preserves a public record of identification of the persons executing documents in front of him and therefore if he enters false details or commits conspiracy you can surely lodge a complaint against such notary to the Notary Cell, Government of Gujarat to initiate disciplinary actions against him.
So far as statement before Police is concerned it has persuasive value and not the conclusive one to establish fraud, forgery or conspiracy. Yes, Court does consider such statements and would give an opportunity to cross examine the accused to testify the veracity of the same.
Apart from the above if you think those papers are part of investigation of your case then you can place an RTI application and ask for records from concerned police station.
For adding names of other accused and levying other charges against the existing accused you need to file an application before JMFC under section 216 and 319 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and seek appropriate orders of the JMFC.
1.Under section 162 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, no statement made by a witness to a police officer in the course of an investigation under Chapter XIV, if not reduced into writing, can be used at the trial for any purpose.
- Hence, the said statement will have no legal value without proving the same in evidence.
2. Yes, you can produce the said copy before the court in support of your compliant .
3. No , the said statement cannot be taken on evidence , and can be denied .
4. No, you have no legal right to take the said copy from the Notary .
- However, you can summon the Notary for producing that documents before the court , after filing a criminal compliant or in the same case after filing of the charge sheet .
