Witness Protection: A Comparative Analysis of Indian and Australian Legislation

Abstract

Witness plays a very important role in the criminal justice system. The outcome of any trial is based on the testimony witness. Without his assistance Court could not sumup with a judicious decision. However, it has been seen in various instances that witnesses turn hostile during the course of a trial. The main reason behind hostility is that the witness is threatened and being pressurized by the accused or his family members to offer testimony in his/her favour. This has turned to a miscarriage of justice. Therefore, there is a need to adopt a proper and effective witness protection policy in the country. In light of the above issue, the Central government had notified a Scheme called Witness Protection Scheme, 2018. Although the scheme was adopted in full enthusiasm and zeal it has not served its purpose. There are various countries like USA, UK, Australia, Germany, Canada, etc. who have incorporated witness protection program in their domestic laws. The witness protection program in Australia is serving its objective by providing protection to the witness in their country. This research paper is based on a comparative study of the witness protection program in India and Australia to identify the possible outcome.

Keywords: Witness protection, hostility, Identity protection, Witness anonymity