Supreme Court of India
SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADEversusSTATE OF MAHARASHTRA & ANR
- Citation
- 2022 INSC 39
- Decided
- 11 January 2022
- Disposal
- Disposed off
- Bench
- D Y CHANDRACHUD
Holding
The Court expanded the definition of vulnerable witness and directed all High Courts to adopt a VWDC Scheme, set up permanent committees, establish centres in every district court, and implement training and funding mechanisms.
Summary
The Supreme Court entertained a miscellaneous application seeking implementation of guidelines for recording evidence of vulnerable witnesses in criminal matters, following earlier pronouncements in Sakshi and Bandu @ Daulat. The Court examined the need for special centres to provide a barrier‑free environment for vulnerable witnesses, including child victims, sexual assault survivors, persons with mental illness, disabilities, and those under threat. It expanded the definition of "vulnerable witness" to be age‑ and gender‑neutral and to encompass a broader range of categories. The Court directed all High Courts to adopt a Vulnerable Witnesses Deposition Centres (VWDC) Scheme, set up permanent committees, and establish at least one VWDC in every district court within specified time‑frames. It also mandated the creation of an all‑India training programme, cost estimation, and funding mechanisms involving the Ministry of Women and Child Development. The application was disposed of after issuing these comprehensive directions.
Issues considered
- What definition of "vulnerable witness" should be adopted for criminal proceedings?
- How should High Courts implement and monitor the establishment of Vulnerable Witnesses Deposition Centres?
- What procedural and infrastructural measures are required to ensure barrier‑free recording of vulnerable witnesses' testimony?
Legislation cited
- Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973s. 327
- Indian Evidence Act, 1872s. 118
- Indian Penal Code, 1860s. 354, s. 377
- Mental Healthcare Act, 2017s. 2(s)
- Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012s. 2(d)
Subjects
vulnerable witnessdeposition centrecriminal procedurewitness protectionspecial courtstraining programmeArticle 142barrier‑free environment
Judgment
[2022] 1 S.C.R. 443 443
SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE A
v.
STATE OF MAHARASHTRA & ANR
(Miscellaneous Application No. 1852 of 2019)
B
JANUARY 11, 2022
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD AND
SURYA KANT, JJ.]
Guidelines/Norms/Directions: Guidelines – Issuance of – As
regards recording evidence of vulnerable witnesses in criminal C
matters – Directions issued to facilitate the implementation of
directions issued in State of Maharashtra v Bandu @ Daulat’s case
for setting up ‘special centres for examination of vulnerable
witnesses in criminal cases – Definition of “vulnerable witness”
contained in Clause 3(a) of the ‘Guidelines for recording evidence D
of vulnerable witnesses in criminal matters’ of the High Court of
Delhi widened – Along with child witnesses who have attained the
age of 18 years, to include age and gender neutral victims of sexual
assault, witnesses suffering from “mental illness”, any witness deemed
to have a threat perception, any speech or hearing impaired E
individual or a person suffering from any other disability – Issuance
of direction to the High Courts to adopt and notify a Vulnerable
Witnesses Deposition Centres Scheme within the stipulated period –
To devise and implement an all India VWDC training programme,a
Committee to be constituted– Issuance of directions to all High Courts
F
and concerned role assignees to facilitate conducting of training
programmes, to set up an in-house permanent VWDC Committee
and one permanent VWDC in every District Court or additional
Sessions Court establishments – Furthermore, NALSA and SLSAs to
provide an effective interface for the scheme for training –
Constitution of India – Art. 142 – Criminal law – Witnesses. G
Sakshi v Union of India (2004) 5 SCC 518 : [2004] (2)
Suppl. SCR 723; State of Punjab v Gurmit Singh (1996)
2 SCC 384 : [1996] (1) SCR 532; State of Maharashtra
H
443
444 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
A v Bandu @ Daulat (2018) 11 SCC 163; Mahender
Chawla v Union of India (2019) 14 SCC 615 : [2018]
(14) SCR 627 – relied on.
Case Law Reference
B [2004] (2) Suppl. SCR 723 relied on Para 1, 5(c)
[1996] (1) SCR 532 relied on Para 1
(2018) 11 SCC 163 relied on Para 2, 4, 5(ii)
[2018] (14) SCR 627 relied on Para 5(e)
C CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Miscellaneous
Application No. 1852 of 2019 in Criminal Appeal No. 1101 of 2019.
From the Judgment and Order dated 20.03.2019 of the High Court
of Judicature at Bombay in Criminal Application No.165 of 2017.
D Ms. Vibha Datta Makhija (AC), Sr. Adv., Ms. Jaikriti S. Jadeja,
Praveen Gaur, Kashish Aneja, Advs. for the Appellant.
Brijender Chahar, Sr. Adv., Gopal Jha, Gautam Singh, Shreyash
Bhardwaj, Ms. Shirin Khajuria, Sandeep Sudhakar Deshmukh, Ms.
Deeplaxmi Subhash Matwankar, Arjun Garg, Aakash Nandolia, Ms.
E Sagun Srivastava, Sanjai Kr. Pathak, Ms. Shashi Pathak, Vivek Gupta,
Ms. Jyoti Chahar, Karan Chahar, Ms. Asmita Singh, Gautam Narayan,
Ashok Mathur, V. N. Raghupathy, Md. Apzal Ansari, R. Neduraman,
Ms. Radhika Gautam, Jagjit Singh Chabbra, Ms. Uttara Babbar, Manan
Bansal, Nikhil Goel, Ms. Naveen Goel, Vinay Mathew, Rahul Chitnis,
F Sachin Patil, Aaditya A. Pande, Geo Joseph, Ms. Shwetal Shepal, Sibo
Sankar Mishra, Niranjan Sahu, Umakant Mishra, Advs. for the
Respondents.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.
G
1. The need for and importance of setting up facilities which cater
to the need for creating a safe and barrier free environment for recording
the evidence of vulnerable witnesses has engaged the attention of this
H
SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 445
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
Court over two decades. In Sakshi v Union of India1, this Court issued A
directions in addition to those which were contained in the decision in
State of Punjab v Gurmit Singh2. The relevant extract from the decision
in Sakshi (supra) reads thus:
“34. […]
B
(1) The provisions of sub-section (2) of Section 327 CrPC shall,
in addition to the offences mentioned in the sub-section,
also apply in inquiry or trial of offences under Sections 354
and 377 IPC.
(2) In holding trial of child sex abuse or rape: C
(i) a screen or some such arrangements may be made
where the victim or witnesses (who may be equally
vulnerable like the victim) do not see the body or
face of the accused;
D
(ii) the questions put in cross-examination on behalf of
the accused, insofar as they relate directly to the
incident, should be given in writing to the presiding
officer of the court who may put them to the victim
or witnesses in a language which is clear and is not E
embarrassing;
(iii) the victim of child abuse or rape, while giving
testimony in court, should be allowed sufficient breaks
as and when required.”
F
2. More recently, in State of Maharashtra v Bandu @ Daulat3,
directions were issued by this Court for setting up “special centres for
examination of vulnerable witnesses” in criminal cases so as to facilitate
a conducive environment for recording the statements of vulnerable
witnesses. This Court dwelt on the guidelines which have been issued
G
by the High Court of Delhi for recording the evidence of vulnerable
witnesses in criminal matters and noted that special centres have been
set up in Delhi for that purpose. While observing that the direction of the
1
(2004) 5 SCC 518
2
(1996) 2 SCC 384
3
(2018) 11 SCC 163 H
446 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
A High Court of Delhi for setting up special centres for vulnerable witnesses
is consistent with the earlier decisions of this Court and supplement the
principles which have been laid down, this Court issued the following
directions:
“12. […] all High Courts can adopt such guidelines if the same
B have not yet been adopted with such modifications as may be
deemed necessary. Setting up of one centre for vulnerable
witnesses may be perhaps required almost in every district in the
country. All the High Courts may take appropriate steps in this
direction in due course in phases. At least two such centres in the
C jurisdiction of each High Court may be set up within three months
from today. Thereafter, more such centres may be set up as per
decision of the High Courts.”
3. The fairness of the process of trial as well as the pursuit of
substantive justice are determined in a significant measure by the manner
D
in which statements of vulnerable witnesses are recorded. The dignity
of person, which is an intrinsic element of Article 21 of the Constitution,
cannot be left to the vagaries of insensitive procedures and a hostile
environment. Access to justice mandates that positive steps have to be
adopted to create a barrier free environment. These barriers are not
E only those which exist within the physical spaces of conventional courts
but those which operate on the minds and personality of vulnerable
witnesses. There is a pressing need to facilitate the salutary purpose
underlying the creation of a barrier free environment where depositions
can be recorded freely without constraining limitations, both physical
F and emotional. This requires not just the creation of infrastructure but
sensitizing all stakeholders.
4. This Court issued notice to all the High Courts in pursuance of
which they have appeared through Counsel. Based on the material which
has been placed before the Court, Ms Vibha Datta Makhija, amicus
G curiae, has prepared a tabulated statement of the position of infrastructure
in various High Courts as of 25 October 2021. A copy of the tabulated
statement is annexed as a broad indicator at Annexure ‘A’ to this order.
Based on the deliberations which have taken place during the course of
proceedings in the Court, the suggestions which have been proposed by
H the amicus curiae and the responses of some of the Counsel who have
SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 447
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
appeared on behalf of the High Courts, the following directions are issued A
under Article 142 of the Constitution in furtherance of the earlier decisions
of this Court. These are intended to facilitate the implementation of the
directions which were rendered on 24 October 2017 in Bandu (supra)
and earlier in other decisions.
5. The directions are enumerated below: B
(i) The definition of “vulnerable witness” contained in Clause
3(a) of the ‘Guidelines for recording evidence of vulnerable
witnesses in criminal matters’4 of the High Court of Delhi
shall not be limited only to child witnesses who have attained
the age of 18 years and should be expanded to include, C
inter alia, the following categories of vulnerable witnesses:
(a) Age neutral victims of sexual assault read with
Sections 273 and 327 of the Code of Criminal
Procedure 1973 and Section 354 of the Indian Penal
Code 18605; D
(b) Gender neutral victims of sexual assault read with
Section 2(d) of the Protection of Children from
Sexual Offences Act 2012;
(c) Age and gender neutral victims of sexual assault
under Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 E
read with paragraph 34(1) of the decision in Sakshi
(supra);
(d) Witnesses suffering from “mental illness” as defined
under Section 2(s) of the Mental Healthcare Act 2017
read with Section 118 of the Indian Evidence Act F
1872;
(e) Any witness deemed to have a threat perception under
the Witness Protection Scheme 2018 of the Union
Government as approved by this Court in Mahender
Chawla v Union of India6; G
4
“VWDC Scheme” available at
http://delhihighcourt.nic.in/writereaddata/upload/notification/
notificationfile_lcwcd2x4.pdf.
5
“IPC”
6
(2019) 14 SCC 615
H
448 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
A (f) Any speech or hearing impaired individual or a person
suffering from any other disability who is considered
to be a vulnerable witness by the competent court;
and
(g) Any other witness deemed to be vulnerable by the
B concerned court.
(ii) The High Courts shall adopt and notify a Vulnerable
Witnesses Deposition Centres7 Scheme within a period of
two months from the date of this order unless a scheme is
already notified. The High Courts which already have
C existing VWDC Schemes in place may consider making
suitable modifications in conformity with the guidelines
which are indicated in the present order. In formulating the
VWDC Scheme, the High Courts shall have due regard to
the scheme which has been formulated by the High Court
D of Delhi, which has been duly approved in the judgment of
this Court in Bandu (supra);
(iii) Every High Court should set up an in-house permanent
VWDC Committee for continuously supervising the
implementation of the present directions and making a
E periodic assessment of the number of VWDCs required in
each district proportionate to the time required for recording
evidence of vulnerable witnesses and to coordinate the
conduct of periodic training programmes;
(iv) Every High Court is requested to make an estimation of
F
costs towards manpower and infrastructure required to set
up at least one permanent VWDC in every establishment
of the District Court (or additional Sessions Court
establishments) and estimate the optimal number of
VWDCs required for the entire State within a period of
G three months;
(v) Having due regard to the importance of conducting periodic
training programmes for manning and managing the VWDCs
and sensitizing all stake holders, including judicial officers,
7
H “VWDC”
SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 449
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
members of the Bar and the staff of the court establishment, A
we constitute a Committee chaired by Justice Ms Gita
Mittal, former Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir
High Court. The Committee shall devise and implement an
All India VWDC Training Programme, besides engaging
with the High Courts on the creation of infrastructure for B
VWDCs. The initial tenure of the Chairperson shall be for
a period of two years. All High Courts or concerned role
assignees shall facilitate and give full cooperation in
conducting training programmes in terms of the module
which may be prepared by the Chairperson; C
(vi) Upon the estimation of costs prepared by the VWDC
Committee of each High Court, the State Government shall
expeditiously sanction the requisite funds within a period of
three months from the date of the submission of the proposal
or the end of the financial year, whichever is earlier, and D
disburse the funds to the High Court in accordance with
the project plan. The State Government shall nominate a
nodal officer of the Finance Department who shall be
associated ex officio with the work of the VWDC
Committee of the High Court, to facilitate the E
implementation of the proposal submitted by the High Court
in terms of these directions;
(vii) The High Courts shall ensure that at least one permanent
VWDC is set up in every District Court establishment (or
F
additional Sessions Court establishments) within a period
of four months. The Registrars General of the High Courts
shall file compliance reports before this Court;
(viii) In many States, ADR Centres have been set up by the
High Courts in close proximity to the court establishments G
in the districts. Where such ADR Centres are in place, the
High Courts would be at liberty to ensure that the VWDC
is made available within the premises of the ADR Centre
H
450 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
A so as to secure a safe, conducive and barrier free
environment for recording the depositions of vulnerable
witnesses;
(ix) The National Legal Services Authority8 as well as the State
B Legal Services Authorities9 have a vital stake and role,
particularly in devising and implementing sensitization and
training programmes. The Chairperson of the Committee
appointed by this Court is requested to engage with NALSA
and SLSAs (subject to the directions which may be issued
C by the Hon’ble Executive Chairperson of NALSA) so as
to provide an effective interface for implementing the
scheme for training;
(x) The Hon’ble Chief Justices of the High Courts would be at
liberty to take all appropriate steps either on the
D
administrative side or on the judicial side in furtherance of
the present directions and to monitor compliance on a
periodic basis;
(xi) The Chief Justice of the High Court of Delhi is requested
E to make available a work space/room for the office of the
VDWC Committee Training Centre and requisite staff,
preferably personnel who have previously assisted in the
development and implementation of the Training Modules
of the Delhi High Court and to designate a Coordinator of
F the programme in consultation with the Chairperson.
Appropriate secretarial and logistical support staff and
equipment may be made available to the Committee on a
reasonable remuneration as fixed by the Chairperson. The
expenses in that regard, including the honorarium payable
G
to the Chairperson shall be defrayed by the Ministry of
Women and Child Development to the Director of the Delhi
8
“NALSA”
9
“SLSAs”
H
SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 451
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
Judicial Academy. The Chairperson may fix a reasonable A
honorarium for the work assigned to her under the terms of
this order. In the event that any further directions are
necessary, the Chairperson may seek them before this Court
and any communication in that regard shall be placed for
further directions; and B
(xii) The Ministry of Women and Child Development of the Union
Government shall designate a nodal officer for coordinating
the implementation of these directions and for providing all
logistical support to Justice Ms Gita Mittal, the Chairperson C
of the Committee appointed by this Court. This would
include the payment of honorarium to the Chairperson in
terms as fixed by the Chairperson and meeting the expenses,
including those towards engaging domain experts for training
programmes. The Union Ministry of Women and Child D
Development and all Ministries of Women and Child
Development in the States shall coordinate with the
Chairperson and extend logistical support. The High Courts
shall, in consultation with the Chairperson of the Committee,
enlist experts in the field to facilitate proper training and E
development of all stake holders.
6. A copy of this order shall be forwarded by the Secretary General
of this Court to the Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Development
of the Union Government and to the Secretaries of the Ministries of F
Women and Child Development of all the State Governments for
compliance. A copy of this order shall also be emailed to Justice Ms Gita
Mittal for information and also to the Registrars General of all the High
Courts for implementation by the High Courts.
G
7. We conclude by recording our appreciation of the dedicated
effort of the amicus curiae.
8. The Miscellaneous Application is accordingly disposed of.
9. Pending application, if any, stands disposed of.
H
452 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
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SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 453
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
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454 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
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SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 455
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
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456 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
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SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 457
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
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458 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
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SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 459
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
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460 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
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SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 461
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
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462 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
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SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 463
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
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464 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
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SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 465
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
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466 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2022] 1 S.C.R.
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SMRUTI TUKARAM BADADE v. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA 467
[DR. DHANANJAYA Y CHANDRACHUD, J.]
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Nidhi Jain Miscellaneous Application disposed of. H
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