Facts which are the Occasion, Cause or Effect of Facts in Issue (Section 7)
According to Sec. 7, the following facts are relevant.-
- facts which are the occasion, cause or effect (immediate or otherwise) of facts in issue or relevant facts,
- facts which constitute the state of things under which they happened, or
- facts which afforded an opportunity for their occurrence or transaction.
Illustrations
- The question is, whether A robbed B.
The facts that, shortly before the robbery, B went to a fair with money in his possession, and that he showed it, or mentioned the fact that he had it, to third persons, are relevant.
- The question is, whether A murdered B. Marks on the ground, produced by a struggle at or near the place where the murder was committed, are relevant facts.
- The question is, whether A poisoned B. The state of B’s health before the symptoms ascribed to poison, and habits of B, known to A, which afforded an opportunity for the administration of poison, are relevant facts.
The section thus provides for the relevancy of the following kinds of facts:
- Facts constituting the occasion.
- Facts which show the cause.
- The effects of the principal facts.
- Facts which provide the opportunity for the happening of the principal fact, and
- Facts which constitute the state of things under which the principal facts happened.
Analysis of Section 7 :
Occasion
Evidence can always be given of the set of circumstances which constituted the occasion for the happening of the principal fact.
Case Law:
In R. v. Richardson, the fact the deceased girl was alone in her cottage at the time of the murder is relevant as it constituted the occasion for the murder.
Illustration (a) is also on the same point. If a man claims that he was robbed of money on the occasion certain fair, he should be able to show that he had money with him, otherwise there would be no occasion to rob him.
The fact that on the way he told one of his friends that he was going to the fair with money would be relevant as this shows that he did have money with him.
Cause – “Cause” often explains why a particular act was done. It helps the court to connect a person with the act. The act in question must have been done by the person who had the cause for it e.g. the fact that accused was in love with deceased’s wife. The word “cause” is broader than the word “motive”.
Where, for example, soon after an election the winning candidate is murdered, the election and somebody’s defeat at it is the cause of the murder and beyond that cause there may be no motive in it.
Another example may be If a person is running short of money, that may cause him to take a loan. And, if he denies the fact of the loan, evidence can be given of the circumstances which became the cause of the loan.
Cause more or less means the same thing does the word “ motive” in section 8. The word “cause” is however, broader than the word “motive”.
Effects
Every act leaves behind certain effects which not only record the happening of the act, but also throw light upon the nature of the act. For example, whether the death of a particular person was caused by suicide or by murder is often determined by looking at the effects of the incident, for suicide and murder have different effects. One of the important facts which connects a person with the act in question is the footprints on the scene of the crime and the finger impressions upon the objects that he might have touched.
Case Laws:
In R. v. Richardson, where a young girl was killed in her cottage, “the prints of the footsteps showed that they were those of a person who must have worn shoes, the soles of which had been newly mended and which had iron knobs or nails in them.” This is one of the effects of the facts in issue. The fact that the accused Richardson’s shoes corresponded exactly with this impression in dimensions, shape of the foot, form of the sole, and the number and position of the nails, was relevant as it so surely established Richardson’s presence at the place of the crime.
Similarly, where a person is poisoned the symptoms produced by the poison are relevant, being the effects of the facts in issue. Possession of stolen articles by a person, immediately after theft, is also an effect. Unexplained scratches on the face or the person of the accused are also the effects of the facts in issue.
Opportunity
The circumstances which provide an opportunity for the happening of a fact in issue are relevant. Sometimes a person has to carve out for himself an opportunity to do the act in question.
For example, the fact that X(Accused left his fellow workers at about the time of the murder under the pretence of going to a smith’s shop was relevant as this gave the X(Accused) his opportunity.
Case Laws:
In R. v. Donellan: The deceased suffered from a ailment, for which he occasionally took a laxative draught. It was usually served by his mother. The accused knew all this and also the time at which it was usually served. He accordingly replaced the bottle with a bottle containing the poison. The mother accordingly innocently administered poison to her son of which he died. The fact of the accused’s knowledge of the deceased’s habit was held to be relevant as it afforded an opportunity to the accused.
Illustration C also speaks of the same circumstances.
State of things
The facts which constitute the state of things under which or in the background of which the principal facts happened are relevant. This category of facts, as enumerated in section 7, would allow evidence of the state of relations between the parties, the state of the health of the deceased and his habits, etc.
Case Laws :
Ratten v. Regina, (1971) RLR 930:
The accused was prosecuted for shooting down his wife and he took the defence of accident, the fact that the accused was unhappy with his wife and was carrying an affair with another woman was held to be relevant as it constituted the state of things in which the principal fact, namely, the shooting down, happened.
- Tape-recorded conversation
Tape-recorded conversation is relevant under Sections 6, 7 and 8 of the Evidence Act, it is res gestae.
Case Laws :
R.M. Malkani v State of Maharashtra 1973 :
The tape-recorded conversation is relevant provided first the conversation is relevant to matter in issue, secondly, there is identification of voice and, thirdly, the accuracy of tape-recorded conversation is proved by eliminating the possibility of erasing the tape-recorded conversation.
Conclusion
Section 7 embraces larger area than Section 6. Section 7 provides for admission of several facts which though do not possibly form part of same transaction, are yet attached with principal transaction in any of above stated modes. The opportunity rule laid down under Section 7 is that the inference drawn from the opportunity is strong one. Its evidentiary value is that it prevents accused from denying his presence at the scene of the offence at that particular period. It is important to prove that the accused was there at the exact time and place.
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