WhatsApp Messages Sent Before Death Can Constitute Prima Facie Dying Declaration, Says MP High Court; Bail Denied in Suicide Abetment Case
In a significant ruling highlighting the growing evidentiary value of digital communications, the Madhya Pradesh High Court has held that WhatsApp messages sent by a deceased person shortly before death can constitute a prima facie dying declaration at the stage of considering a bail application. Relying on the messages and other material collected during the investigation, the Court refused to grant bail to three men accused of abetting the suicide of a 25-year-old tribal youth from Dhar district.
The case arose from the alleged suicide of Santosh alias Lakhan Ausari, who was found dead following an ongoing dispute over agricultural land. According to the prosecution, the deceased had been repeatedly threatened, abused and humiliated by the accused. During the investigation, police recovered three WhatsApp messages allegedly sent by the deceased to his father moments before his death, in which he specifically named the accused persons. The prosecution argued that these messages, coupled with witness statements, clearly pointed towards sustained harassment that drove the victim to take his own life.
Justice Jai Kumar Pillai, sitting at the Indore Bench, observed that the electronic messages recovered from the deceased’s mobile phone constituted “a crucial prima facie dying declaration” for the limited purpose of deciding the bail application. The Court noted that the messages explicitly identified the accused and were supported by statements of the deceased’s father and brother, who alleged continuous intimidation and death threats arising from the land dispute.
The accused argued that they had been falsely implicated due to prior enmity, questioned the authenticity and evidentiary value of the WhatsApp messages, and pointed to alleged inconsistencies in the prosecution’s case, including the absence of certain documentary evidence relating to the land dispute. They further contended that these shortcomings weakened the prosecution’s version and justified their release on bail.
Rejecting these submissions, the High Court reiterated that a court considering bail is not required to conduct a mini-trial or meticulously evaluate the evidence. Questions regarding the admissibility, authenticity and evidentiary weight of the electronic messages are matters to be tested during the trial. At the bail stage, the Court found that the prosecution had established a strong prima facie case based on the WhatsApp messages, the post-mortem findings and corroborative witness statements.
Finding no reason to interfere with the Special Court’s earlier order, the High Court dismissed the criminal appeal and upheld the rejection of bail. The ruling underscores the judiciary’s increasing recognition of digital evidence in criminal proceedings and indicates that electronic communications, including WhatsApp messages sent immediately before death, may be treated as a prima facie dying declaration where they directly identify the alleged perpetrators and are supported by surrounding circumstances.
