Death of A Man

*Presumptions About Death of a Man*

What does S.107 of Indian Evidence Act, 1872 says. It says that when the question is whether a man is alive or dead, and it is shown that he was alive within 30 years, the burden of proving that he is dead is on the person who affirms it.

S.110 of BSA, 2023 says that when the question is whether a man is alive or dead, and it is shown that he was alive within thirty years, the burden of proving that he is dead is on the person who affirms it. So, S.110 of BSA, 2023 are identical with S.107 of IEA, 1872. 

Let us look at understanding of "proved" under BSA, 2023. S. 2 (j) of BSA, 2023 says that "proved".—A fact is said to be proved when, after considering the matters before it, the Court either believes it to exist, or considers its existence so probable that a prudent man ought, under the circumstances of the particular case, to act upon the supposition that it exists. 

It was held in Master Sachin Gupta v. Chander Kishor Aggarwal [2011] GCtR 6045 (Delhi) that under S.107 of Indian Evidence Act, 1872 when the existence of a person is in question and if he is shown to have been living in a given time within a period of 30 years and there is nothing to suggest the probability of his death, presumption of such a person being alive will arise. It was also held in LIC v. Anuradha [2004] GCR 6046 (SC) with reference to limit of 7 years it was held that "so long as the dispute is not raised before any forum and in any legal proceedings the occasion for raising the presumption does not arise." 

The decisions make it clear that a person is presumed to be alive if he has been shown to be living within 30 years and if a person wants such a person to be presumed to be dead, then such dispute has to be raised in a legal proceeding before a Court when we read the findings of LIC v. Anuradha [2004] GCtR 6046 (SC) together with the definition contained in S.2 (j) of BSA, 2023. S. 2 (j) clearly uses the word "Court" and thus, a declaration of death of a person has to be done by a Court only.