Shimla School Murder Case: Principal’s Video Statement Could Become Key Evidence in Court

Shot of Head Outside School
June 13, Maneesha Mittal was shot outside her school, a killing that shocked Himachal Pradesh. 

She is said to have made a video expressing fears for her safety and naming her brother before she died. 

Later, police arrested her brother, who they said was the master mind behind the murder. He denied all the charges. The trial hasn’t started yet.

Why Law Needs The Video Statement
The case has brought to the fore Section 26(a) of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, India’s new law on evidence that replaced the Indian Evidence Act.

Under this section, any statement made by a person as to the cause of his death, or the circumstances leading to it, may be admitted in evidence upon his death. 

Legal experts say it doesn’t matter if the person didn’t expect to die when they made the statement. If it's about what happened, the court can look at it.

This gives Maneesha’s video a crucial possible status as evidence.

Court to Decide How Much Weight It Holds
"Admission is not the same as conviction," experts warn. 

The court will have to verify the authenticity of the video and the context in which it was recorded and corroborate it with other evidence brought forth in the course of the trial.

The statement will be part of the larger case, not the entire case.

Investigation continues, trial set
Police are still investigating and collecting evidence for court. The accused says he did not do it.

The case has also fuelled broader discussions on how recorded statements and videos are used in criminal investigations under the new law.

For the moment, the question is how much weight the court will give to Maneesha Mittal’s last recorded words when the trial begins.