Meaning of facts

Fact is a term having a variety of meanings.

i) it may signify either a state of things, that is, an existence, or a motion, that is, an event.
ii) an act, action, or deed, a thing done.
iii) an effect produced or achieved.
iv) something fixed and unchangeable; a reality as distinguished from supposition or opinion.
v) a truth as distinguished from fiction or error, a circumstance.
vi) an occurrence or event.
vii) an incident; an event or incident.
In the popular concept, the term ‘fact’ means an existing thing. It does not refer to a mental condition of which a person is conscious. But as defined in the Evidence Act the meaning of the word ‘fact’ is not limited to only what is tangible and visible or, is in any way, the object of senses.

Section 3 of the Evidence Act states:

‘Fact’ means and includes,
1) anything, state of things, or relation of things, capable of being perceived by the senses;
2) any mental condition of which any person is conscious. Illustrations:
a) That there are certain objects arranged in a certain order in a certain place, is a fact.
b) That a man heard or saw something, is a fact.
c) That man said certain words.
Facts can be a principle or evidentiary, positive or negative, physical or psychological, external or internal.

Classification of facts

1) Physical facts: physical facts are such as either having their seat in some inanimate being or if in one that is animate; then not by virtue of the qualities which constitute it such. A horse and a man are physical facts

(a), Physical facts mean and include anything, state of things, or relation of things capable of being perceived by the five senses.
Hence all facts which are subject to perception by bodily senses are physical facts. The existence of the visible objects, the outward acts of intelligent agents, the res gestae of a suit, etc., range themselves under the physical class. The physical facts are capable of rendering direct proof.

2) Psychological facts: psychological facts are those which have their seat in an animate being by virtue of the qualities by which it is constituted animate. Psychological facts mean and include anything of which a person is conscious.

Psychological facts are not subject to perception by bodily senses but they are subject to consciousness. The intention or animus of a particular individual in doing a particular act is a psychological fact.

Psychological facts are those which exist only in the mind of individuals e.g. the sensation or recollection of which a man is conscious, his desires, his intentions in doing particular acts, etc. Psychological facts refer to internal facts the subject of consciousness, such as intention, fraud, good faith, and knowledge.

Psychological facts are incapable of rendering direct proof, or direct testimony. The existence of such a fact can be ascertained either by confession of the party or by presumptive inference from other surrounding physical facts.

3) Events and states of things: Event indicates action and state of thing indicates the existence of an object or thing. For example, the fall of a tree is an event, whereas the existence of a tree is a state of things. But both are facts.

4) Positive or affirmative and negative facts: The existence of a certain state of things is a positive or affirmative fact, the non-existence of it is a negative fact. For example, as nonavailability of alternative accommodation to a tenant refers to a state of things, hence it is a positive fact coming within the definition of fact and it is not an absence of fact.

The definition of ‘fact’ does not restrict a fact to something which can be exhibited as a material object. Mental condition is also a fact but inference arrived at by a person by a process of rationalism, being not a mental condition of that person, is not a fact.

Some Court decisions relating to the term ‘fact’:

1) It has been held that facts include factum probandum i.e. the evidentiary fact from which the principal fact follows immediately or by inference.

2) It has been held that the 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 a particular case to act upon the supposition that it exists and the fact must therefore be existed as denoting some incident which occurred or something which was done as opposed to something said or otherwise.

3) Statements of prisoners while in police custody leading to the discovery of material objects held to be admissible as leading to the discovery of the relevant fact.

4) A statement is included in the definition of fact.
The definition of ‘fact’ does not restrict a fact to something which can be exhibited as a material object. Mental condition is also a fact but inference arrived at by a person by a process of rationalism, being not a mental condition of that person, is not a fact.

What facts may be proved:

The facts which may ordinarily be proved in judicial proceedings are facts in issue, facts relevant to the issue, and collateral facts i.e. those which affect the admissibility of evidence.
1)Facts-in-issue:
Facts-in-issue is the facts that a plaintiff (or prosecutor) must prove in order to win, or which a defendant must prove in order to succeed in some defense that is open to him.
“Facts in issue, which are sometimes called ‘principal’ facts, are those necessary by law to establish the claim, liability or defense, forming the subject matter of the proceedings; and which are in dispute between the parties. In civil cases, the Court may give directions about the issues on which it requires evidence.”

“Facts in issue are facts out of which some legal right, liability, or disability involved in the inquiry, necessarily arises and upon which, accordingly, a decision must be arrived at.
Matters which are affirmed by one party to a suit and denied by the other may be denominated as facts in issue; what facts are in issue in particular cases, is a question to be determined by the substantive law or, in some cases, by that branch of the law of procedure which regulates the law of pleadings, civil or criminal.

Facts in issue are the facts that form the subject matter of the Court’s decision. Facts in issue in the plain sense mean facts that are in issue and form the subject matter of the Court’s decision.
Facts in issue in criminal proceedings are alleged by the prosecution and denied by the defense, by a plea of not guilty. Facts in issue are also asserted by the plaintiff in civil proceedings and denied b the defendant.

The definition of ‘facts in issue’ also is an inclusive one. An issue will arise when a material proposition of fact or law is affirmed by one party and denied by the other. They can be issues of fact and issues of l law.
Order XIV, Rule 1, C.P.C. lays down the “issues arise when a material proposition of fact or law is affirmed by the one party and denied by the other” under the explanation of the definition of ‘facts in issue’ under Section 3 of Act, 1872. When Order XIV, Rule 1, issues of facts are recorded, the facts to be asserted or denied in the answer to such issues are also ‘facts in issue.

In criminal cases, the charge constitutes and includes ‘facts in issue’ in Chapter XIII, Cr.P.C. 1973. In a criminal proceeding, it is absolutely necessary to confine the evidence to the issue, namely, whether the accused is guilty or not, of the charges leveled against him.

Facts relevant to the issue

The word ‘relevant’ has two meanings. In one sense it means ‘connected’ and in another ‘admissible’. According to Stephen ‘relevancy’ means the connection of events as cause and effect. What is really meant by relevant fact’ is a fact that has a certain degree of does not give any definition of relevant.

Section 3 of the Act states that “one fact is said to be relevant to another when the one is connected with the other in any of the ways referred to in the provisions of this Act relating to the relevancy of facts”. Under Chapter II, Sections 5 to 55 deal with the relevancy of facts.
Stephen in his Digest Evidence explains that “the word ‘relevant’ means that any two facts to which it is applied are so related to each other that according to the ordinary course of events one, either taken by itself or in connection with other facts, proves or renders possible the past, present or future existence or non-existence of the other

facts relevant to the issue, which are sometimes called ‘evidentiary facts’, are facts which tend, either directly or indirectly, to prove or disprove a fact in issue.”
Relevancy of fact means connection in such a way, that belief in one fact helps the Court to come to a conclusion upon the existence of another fact. Sir James Stephen says that any fact is relevant which shows or constitutes a motive or preparation for any fact in issue or relevant fact.

The following are relevant facts

i) Facts which are the occasion, cause, or effect of facts in an issue are relevant facts (Section 7).
ii) Motive, preparation, and previous or subsequent conduct of the accused band parties are relevant facts (Section 8).
iii) The facts, which are necessary to explain or introduce the facts in the issue or relevant facts, are relevant facts (Section 9).
iv) Things said or done by conspirators in reference to common design are relevant facts (Section 10).

The distinction between facts in issue and relevant facts:

1) Facts in issue are determined by the Courts based upon the facts of the case during the stage of ‘framing of issues, but the Courts consider the relevant facts in issue in supporting of denying those facts in issue during the trial of the case i.e. to prove the facts in issue.
2) A fact in issue is a necessary ingredient of liability or rights whereas a relevant fact merely renders probable the existence or non-existence of any ingredient of a right or liability.
3) A fact in issue is the principal factor i.e. factum probaddium but a relevant factor is an evidentiary fact i.e. factum probandi.
4) Facts in issue are the “matters which are in disputes” which are affirmed by one party and denied by another party, while the relevant facts are not themselves in issue, but they are the foundations of inference regarding them.
5) An example of the fact issue in a case is that ‘A’ is accused of murdering ‘B’. The facts in issue of that case are:
i) whether ‘A’ caused ‘B’s death;
ii) whether ‘A’ intended to cause ‘B’s death. Whereas the relevant facts, in this case, are the ‘A’s plea of alibi that at the time of occurrence of the murder, he was away at a distant place.
The relevant facts are i) the fact where he was at another place; ii) the fact whether he was at the same time at another place.
6) The facts in the issue are the basis for the law of evidence while the relevant facts are part of the law of evidence.

Collateral facts:

Collateral facts in the law of evidence are those not bearing directly on the issue before the Court; facts that are not directly involved or connected with the principal issue or matter in dispute.
Collateral facts are facts that affect the admissibility of evidence. Some kinds of evidence are not allowed unless some pre-condition is shown to exist. For example, what is called ‘dying declarations’ are not admissible unless the declarator knew he was dying. His knowledge of impending death has no logical connection with the fact in issue. It is the judge who decides whether collateral facts are established as part of his general duty to rule on the admissibility of evidence.