Admissibility of a dying declaration in Section 26 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 can be…

The relevant maxim is nemo moriturus praesumitur mentiri: a person approaching death is presumed not to lie. It explains the traditional rationale for admitting a dying declaration as an exception to hearsay. Under section 26(a) of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (formerly section 32(1) of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872), the statement must concern the cause of death or the circumstances of the transaction resulting in death when that cause is in question.