Accomplice evidence and retracted confession can sustain conviction when supported by material corroboration and surrounding circumstances.

Accomplice evidence is admissible under Section 133, but it must be corroborated in material particulars as a matter of prudence under illustration (b) to Section 114. A co-accused's statement, even if the trial later abated by death, may be used for the limited purpose of corroboration under the Evidence Act, while a retracted confession remains admissible but is weak evidence and must be closely scrutinised. On the facts, the Court found sufficient independent corroboration in the surrounding circumstances and consistency of the statements, and upheld the conviction.

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Issues: Whether the conviction of the appellant could be sustained on the basis of accomplice evidence corroborated by the previous statement of the accomplice and the retracted confession of a co-accused, and whether such material afforded sufficient legal corroboration linking the appellant with the conspiracy.

Analysis: The accomplice was found to be a competent witness, and his testimony was accepted as truthful. His earlier statement to the Customs authorities was treated as supporting the same narrative, though not as self-corroboration in the strict sense. The statement of a co-accused who was jointly tried till judgment, though later abated by death, was held relevant and admissible for the limited purpose of corroboration under the Evidence Act. The governing principle was that accomplice evidence is legally admissible under Section 133, but prudence requires corroboration in material particulars under illustration (b) to Section 114. A retracted confession remains admissible but is a weak piece of evidence, especially against a co-accused, and must inspire confidence after close scrutiny. On the facts, the Court found substantial independent corroboration in the surrounding circumstances and in the consistency of the statements, excluding any real possibility of false implication or collusion.

Conclusion: The conviction was upheld and the appeal failed.

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