Witness not excused from answering on ground that answer will criminate
Section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 deals with witness not excused from answering on ground that answer will criminate. A witness shall not be excused from answering any question as to any matter relevant to the matter in issue in any suit or in any civil or criminal proceeding, upon the ground that the answer to such question will criminate, or may tend directly or indirectly to criminate, such witness, or that it w The Act came into force on 01 Sep 1872. Repealed by section 170 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (47 of 2023) with effect from 1 July 2024, but conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under it.
A witness shall not be excused from answering any question as to any matter relevant to the matter in issue in any suit or in any civil or criminal proceeding, upon the ground that the answer to such question will criminate, or may tend directly or indirectly to criminate, such witness, or that it will expose, or tend directly or indirectly to expose, such witness to a penalty or forfeiture of any kind: Proviso. –– Provided that no such answer, which a witness shall be compelled to give, shall subject him to any arrest or prosecution, or be proved against him in any criminal proceeding, except a prosecution for giving false evidence by such answer.
Section 132, The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (Act 1 of 1872).
Now in the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam
BSA 137 Witness not excused from answering on ground that answer will criminate Text carried over almost unchanged 97%
Measured by comparing the text of the two provisions, not taken from an official correspondence table — there is no machine-readable one. See both texts side by side before relying on it.
Both regimes are live. The repealed enactment still governs what happened while it was in force. We never redirect one to the other.
Cross-references
Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.
Referred to by 1
Judgments citing this section
These may be obiter dicta or a precedent, for you to study. These are the judgments where this section is quoted.
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… However, under the impugned judgment and order, the High Court dismissed the criminal revision petition preferred by the appellant. SUBMISSIONS 7. Mr. Vivek K. Tankha, learned senior counsel appearing for the appellant has argued that the appellant was entitled to the benefit under Section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872[3]( page-2-0) and he could not be held accountable for the statement made by him. It is also argued that the evidence available on record do not make out any prima facie case <span id="page-2-0"></span>3 'of the Act' against the appellant for summoning him as an accused under …
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… However, under the impugned judgment and order, the High Court dismissed the criminal revision petition preferred by the appellant. SUBMISSIONS 7. Mr. Vivek K. Tankha, learned senior counsel appearing for the appellant has argued that the appellant was entitled to the benefit under Section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872[3]( page-2-0) and he could not be held accountable for the statement made by him. It is also argued that the evidence available on record do not make out any prima facie case <span id="page-2-0"></span>3 'of the Act' against the appellant for summoning him as an accused under …
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… The law enjoins every person to speak the truth. This is not something alien to the criminal jurisprudence that a person is bound to answer a question if the fact is within his exclusive knowledge. Just to indicate, section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act provides that a witness cannot take an excuse not to answer any question upon the ground that the answer to such question will criminate, or may tend directly or indirectly to criminate him, or that it will expose or tend directly or indirectly to expose him to a penalty or forfeiture of …
Questions about Section 132
What does Section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act deal with?
Section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act is headed "Witness not excused from answering on ground that answer will criminate". A witness shall not be excused from answering any question as to any matter relevant to the matter in issue in any suit or in any civil or criminal proceeding, upon the ground that the answer to such question will criminate, or may tend directly or indirectly to criminate, such witness, or that it w
How do I find court cases under Section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: IEA 132, section 132 IEA, section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome.
What should I read with Section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act, and has it changed?
1 other provision in this corpus refers back to it. For anything done on or after 1 July 2024 the provision to read is BSA 137 (Witness not excused from answering on ground that answer will criminate), which replaced it; conduct before that date is still charged, tried and appealed under this section.
When did Section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act come into force?
Section 132 of the Indian Evidence Act, cited as IEA 132, came into force on 01 Sep 1872, having been enacted on 15 Mar 1872. It is no longer in force.
Other sections of this Act
- 32. Cases in which statement of relevant fact by person who is dead or cannot be found, etc., is relevant1207 words
- 14. Facts showing existence of state of mind, or of body of bodily feeling1080 words
- 92. Exclusion of evidence of oral agreement809 words
- 8. Motive, preparation and previous or subsequent conduct773 words
- 65B. Admissibility of electronic records743 words
- 3. Interpretation-clause667 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Recovered from the consolidated text published by India Code (item e51341fa-7528-4327-9a57-5d194e16db6f). This page is not a substitute for legal advice.