Confessional statement of deceased under duress finds favour in court

Confessional statement of deceased under duress finds favour in court
HERALD REPORTER
MARGAO, JUNE 10
Prosecution claim that the confessional statement made by deceased Nadia Torrado at the Jupiter hospital, Thana was under duress has found favour with Additional Sessions Judge, B P Deshpande.
While rejecting Mickky Pacheco’s bail application, Judge Deshpande said it is clear that the first statement given by the mother of the deceased at Apollo Victor Hospital at Margao shows that the deceased consumed full contents of a Ratol tube paste at around 9 am on May 15. “This is again confirmed by the doctor, who initially attended the deceased at Apollo Hospital, Margao. Thus, it is clear that the subsequent statement of the deceased recorded before the Special Magistrate at Mumbai is “surely under duress”, when it is found recorded that she mistakenly took Ratol as a toothpaste”, the Judge said.
He further said the said statement given at Mumbai does not disclose that the deceased swallowed the contents considering it as toothpaste, so as to affect her liver badly which was opined by the doctors as fit for transplant.
“Thus, it was rightly pointed out by the Public prosecutor Sarojini Sardinha that the so called statement of the deceased given at Mumbai is not free and the same cannot be considered as given voluntarily by the deceased, more specifically considering the relationship of the deceased with Pacheco and that the position which he was occupying at the relevant time”, the Judge added.