Poulami Das & Arpita Jaiswal, The West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences
INTRODUCTION
The Delivery of Justice in our country, including criminal justice, has a significant effect on the citizens of that country.1 The judgment rendered by the court determines the fate of the defendant, and the result of the case has an impact on the defendant's life and freedoms. A free and fair trial is therefore a fundamental right that must be carried out in accordance with the concepts of equity and justice as well as the applicable legal regulations.2 Despite the fact that Indian statutes provide a certain procedure, there has often been a tendency to compromise the validity of the means in order to get the desired outcome.
Citizens have the right to be free from arbitrary and unlawful searches and seizures in the privacy of their own houses. Authorities frequently use illegal methods to gather evidence, and in certain cases, this evidence is enough to convict the offender.3 In contravention of that right, it would effectively be granting the right, but in actuality, to deny its privilege and enjoyment, if illegally obtained evidence was permitted in court. Coerced confessions, wiretapped conversations, sting operations, illegal search, violating a person's body, statements extracted during a period of unnecessary delay in bringing a suspect before a magistrate are a few examples of illegal methods for gathering evidence, and this unethical practise is a part of the "poisonous tree." Evidence gathered by using such methods is referred to as "fruit of the poisonous tree".
