Dying Declaration Valid Sans Doctor’s Fitness Note, Says HC

Soumyadip Mullick | MP  | 25 Sept 2025 | Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court has ruled that the absence of a doctor’s written certificate declaring a patient fit to make a statement does not by itself invalidate a dying declaration, provided it is recorded in the doctor’s presence and corroborated by other evidence.

Delivering judgment in the 2002 murder of China Deshmukh, a Division Bench of Justices Md. Shabbar Rashidi and Debangsu Basak upheld the life sentences of Dilip Dey alias Dila and Manoj Singh alias Mota Manoj. The two had appealed against their conviction under Section 302 read with Section 34 of the IPC. Manoj Singh’s conviction under the Arms Act was also affirmed.

Deshmukh was shot while returning home after a late-night movie show in June 2002. He was rushed to SSKM Hospital, where he named his assailants in a statement recorded by police in the presence of the attending doctor. He succumbed to his injuries shortly after.

During investigation, police recovered an improvised pistol from bushes near Taratala Road at the instance of Manoj Singh. The firearm was seized under proper labels and seals and later sent for forensic examination. The ballistic report confirmed the bullet taken from the victim’s body had been fired from that weapon.

Several residents testified to seeing the accused near the scene. However, one companion of the deceased who had accompanied him to the cinema was declared hostile and failed to identify them in court.

The Bench observed that although the doctor admitted he had not formally certified the victim’s fitness in writing, his testimony established that the statement was recorded with his permission and in his presence. “The evidence of the doctor and the surrounding circumstances lend reliability to the declaration,” the judges held.

The court concluded that the dying declaration, supported by eyewitness accounts, medical evidence, and the ballistic match, formed a complete chain establishing guilt. It dismissed the defence claim that the hostile witness undermined the case.

Both convicts will continue to serve life imprisonment with fines of Rs 5,000 each. Manoj Singh will also undergo additional terms under the Arms Act, though all sentences will run concurrently. The period already spent in custody will be set off under Section 428 of the CrPC.