Section 16
Admission of statements in evidence
Where any person is charged with an offence under this
Act, any statement, whether such statement amounts to a confession or not or is oral or in writing, made at any time, whether before or after such person is charged and whether in the course of a police investigation or not and whether or not wholly or partly in answer to questions, by such person to or in the hearing of any police officer not below the rank of Inspector, whether or not interpreted to him by any police officer or any other person concerned or not in the arrest, shall be admissible at his trial in evidence and, if such person tenders himself as a witness, any such statement may be used in cross-examination and for the purpose of impeaching his credit:
Provided that no such statement shall be admissible or used as aforesaid—
(a)
if the making of the statement appears to the court to have been caused by any inducement, threat or promise having reference to the charge against such person, proceeding from a person in authority and sufficient in the opinion of the court, to give such person grounds which would appear to him reasonable for supposing that by making it he would gain any advantage or avoid any evil of a temporal nature in reference to the proceeding against him; or
(b)
in the case of a statement made by such person after his arrest unless the court is satisfied that a caution was administered to him in the following words or words to the like effect:
“Do you wish to say anything? You are not obliged to say anything unless you wish to do so but whatever you say will be taken down in writing and may be given in evidence.”:
Provided that a statement made by any person before there is time to caution him shall not be rendered inadmissible in evidence merely by reason of no such caution having been given if it has been given as soon as possible.
Kidnapping 15
(2)
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any written law, a person accused of an offence under this Act shall not be bound to answer any questions relating to such offence after any such caution as aforesaid has been administered to him.
(3)
Whenever a police officer has made up his mind to charge a person with an offence under this Act, he shall first caution such person, in the manner prescribed in subsections (1) and (2) before asking him any questions or any further questions as the case may be.
(4)
For the purposes of this section “offence under this Act”
means—
(i)
an offence punishable under subsection 3(1) or under section 5, 6 or 10;
(ii)
any of the offences referred to in subsection 3(2);
(iii)
any conspiracy to commit, or an attempt to commit, or an abetment of, any of the offences specified in paragraphs (i) and (ii).
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*NOTE—see section 53 of the Abolition of Mandatory Death Penalty Act 2023
[Act 846] w.e.f 4 July 2023 which provides the following provision:
“Transitional