SSC Stenographer 2026 PYQ — Question 37

Solution: The correct answer is A confession made to a police officer is admissible only if it leads to the discovery of a fact under Section 27.
Explanation:
☛ Under Section 25 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, any confession made to a police officer is strictly inadmissible as evidence against an accused person.
☛ Section 27 of the Act operates as an exception to Sections 24, 25, and 26 (often referred to as the doctrine of confirmation by subsequent facts).
☛ According to Section 27, when any fact is discovered in consequence of information received from an accused person in police custody, only that part of the information which relates distinctly to the fact discovered is admissible in evidence.
Extra Exam-Relevant Facts:
☛ Section 24: Renders a confession irrelevant if it is caused by any inducement, threat, or promise proceeding from a person in authority.
☛ Section 26: Confessions made by a person in police custody cannot be proved unless made in the immediate presence of a Magistrate.
☛ Section 27: Its constitutional validity was upheld by the Supreme Court in the landmark case of State of U.P. v. Deoman Upadhyaya (1960).
☛ Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023: Replaces the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, where Section 25 and Section 27 correspond to provisions under Section 23 of the new Act.
Important One-Liners for Upcoming Exams:
☛ Which section of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 bars confessions made to a police officer? → Section 25
☛ In whose immediate presence can a confession in police custody become admissible under Section 26? → Magistrate
☛ Which landmark case affirmed the constitutionality of Section 27 of the Indian Evidence Act? → State of U.P. v. Deoman Upadhyaya (1960)
☛ Who originally drafted the Indian Evidence Act, 1872? → Sir James Fitzjames Stephen
☛ When did the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 come into force? → 1 September 1872