Section 75
Admission of statements in evidence
Where any person is charged with any offence under this Act or any regulations made thereunder, any statement whether the statement amounts to a confession or not or is oral or in writing, made at any time, whether before or after the person is charged and whether in the course of investigations made under section 74 or not and whether or not wholly or partly in answer to questions by that person to or in the hearing of any authorized officer or police officer of or above the rank of Inspector and whether or not interpreted to him by another authorized officer, police officer or other person, shall be admissible in evidence at his trial and, if the person charged tenders himself as a witness, any such statement may be used in cross-examination and for the purpose of impeaching his credit:
Provided that—
(a)
no such statement shall be admissible or used as aforesaid—
(i)
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 proceeding from a person in authority and sufficient in the opinion of the court to give the person charged 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 references to the proceedings against him; or
72
(ii)
in the case of a statement made by the 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:
“It is my duty to warn you that you are not obliged to say anything or to answer any question, but anything you say, whether or not in answer to a question, may be given in evidence”; and
(b)
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 administered if it had been administered as soon as possible.
(2)
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any written law, a person accused of an offence to which subsection (1)
applies shall not be bound to answer any questions relating to the case after any such caution as aforesaid has been administered to him.
Obstruction to search, etc.