identification parade - only corroborative , identification done in the Court, is a substantive piece of evidence

THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

SUNDAR @ SUNDARRAJAN — Appellant VS STATE BY INSPECTOR OF POLICE — Respondent

( Before : Dr. Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud, CJI., Hima Kohli and Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha, JJ. )

Review Petition (Crl.) Nos. 159-160 of 2013 in Criminal Appeal Nos. 300-301 of 2011

DATE OF DECISION 21-03-2023

21. Apart from the above, it is pertinent to point out the legal position in respect of the identification parade. It is settled proposition of law that the identification parade is only a corroborative piece of evidence and the identification done in the Court, is a substantive piece of evidence. The Court must look into whether at the time when the witnesses saw the accused in the company of the deceased, such a thing would have caused a dent in their memory. In the instant case, the child was only 7 years old, and both the child and P.W.2 Kamali who was coming along with the child, got down together, and the appellant/A-1 came there and took the child on the flimsy reason. In such a situation, naturally the same would have caused a dent in the memory of P.W.2, and and it would not fail ordinarily, and equally so the memory of P.W.3, a man aged about 41. No doubt, it would have caused a dent in their memory. Therefore, the trial Judge was perfectly correct in accepting the evidence of P.Ws.2 and 3.