Jun 13, 2026 · 9 min · 8 segments
What happens when a witness called by a party gives evidence that contradicts his earlier statement? This episode explains the concept of a hostile witness, the procedure under **S.154 Evidence Act…
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Now let's start with the definition.
A hostile witness is not simply a witness who gives evidence that is unfavorable to the party calling him.
That is a very common mistake.
A witness is hostile when in the opinion of the judge, he shows no desire to tell the truth at the instance of the party calling him, or shows a hostile animus towards that party.
That explanation appears in Dato' Haji Asman Mahalan's case.
So hostility is really about unwillingness to tell the truth, evasiveness, deliberate inconsistency, a manner showing bias against the party calling him.
The same case also makes an important point.
Merely giving unfavorable testimony is not enough to make a witness hostile because the witness may simply be telling the truth even though it hurts the party calling him.
So we must distinguish between unfavorable witness, which does not help your case but may still be honest, and hostile witness, show something more, inconsistency, evasiveness, unwillingness to tell the truth, or hostility in attitude.
Now let's start with the definition.
A hostile witness is not simply a witness who gives evidence that is unfavorable to the party calling him.
That is a very common mistake.
A witness is hostile when in the opinion of the judge, he shows no desire to tell the truth at the instance of the party calling him, or shows a hostile animus towards that party.
That explanation appears in Dato' Haji Asman Mahalan's case.
So hostility is really about unwillingness to tell the truth, evasiveness, deliberate inconsistency, a manner showing bias against the party calling him.
The same case also makes an important point.
Merely giving unfavorable testimony is not enough to make a witness hostile because the witness may simply be telling the truth even though it hurts the party calling him.
So we must distinguish between unfavorable witness, which does not help your case but may still be honest, and hostile witness, show something more, inconsistency, evasiveness, unwillingness to tell the truth, or hostility in attitude.
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