Public Administration in Ancient India c15.82

c15.82

Facts in a case were proved by evidence,³ which was either oral, or documentary, or real.⁴ In cases relating to property, possession was regarded as some evidence of ownership.⁵ Although all the forms of evidence were equally admissible, the oral evidence of witnesses was the commonest mode of proving a fact. Direct evidence was generally regarded as superior to circumstantial evidence, but in certain cases, e.g. theft and housebreaking, the latter was often the only kind of evidence available, and was held sufficient.¹ It seems that hearsay evidence was not always excluded.²