336. Where any document or report prepared by a public servant, scientific expert or medical officer is purported to be used as evidence in any inquiry, trial or other proceeding under this Sanhita, and—
(i) such public servant, expert or officer is either transferred, retired, or died; or
(ii) such public servant, expert or officer cannot be found or is incapable of giving deposition; or
(iii) Securing presence of such public servant, expert or officer is likely to cause delay in holding the inquiry, trial or other proceeding,
the Court shall secure presence of successor officer of such public servant, expert, or officer who is holding that post at the time of such deposition to give deposition on such document or report:
Provided that no public servant, scientific expert or medical officer shall be called to appear before the Court unless the report of such public servant, scientific expert or medical officer is disputed by any of the parties of the trial or other proceedings:
Provided further that the deposition of such successor public servant, expert or officer may be allowed through audio-video electronic means.
GENERAL PROVISIONS AS TO INQUIRIES AND TRIALS Person once convicted or acquitted not to be tried for same offence.
337.(1) A person who has once been tried by a Court of competent jurisdiction for an offence and convicted or acquitted of such offence shall, while such conviction or acquittal remains in force, not be liable to be tried again for the same offence, nor on the same facts for any other offence for which a different charge from the one made against him might have been made under sub-section (1) of section 244, or for which he might have been convicted under sub-section (2) thereof.
(2) A person acquitted or convicted of any offence may be afterwards tried, with the consent of the State Government, for any distinct offence for which a separate charge might have been made against him at the former trial under sub- section (1) of section 243.
(3) A person convicted of any offence constituted by any act causing consequences which, together with such act, constituted a different offence from that of which he was convicted, may be afterwards tried for such last-mentioned
offence, if the consequences had not happened, or were not known to the Court to have happened, at the time when he was convicted.
(4) A person acquitted or convicted of any offence constituted by any acts may, notwithstanding such acquittal or conviction, be subsequently charged with, and tried for, any other offence constituted by the same acts which he may have committed if the Court by which he was first tried was not competent to try the offence with which he is subsequently charged.
(5) A person discharged under section 281 shall not be tried again for the same offence except with the consent of the Court by which he was discharged or of any other Court to which the first-mentioned Court is subordinate.
(6) Nothing in this section shall affect the provisions of section 26 of the General Clauses Act, 1897 or of section 208 of this Sanhita.
Explanation.—The dismissal of a complaint, or the discharge of the accused, is not an acquittal for the purposes of this section.
Illustrations.
(a) A is tried upon a charge of theft as a servant and acquitted. He cannot afterwards, while the acquittal remains in force, be charged with theft as a servant, or, upon the same facts, with theft simply, or with criminal breach of trust.
(b) A is tried for causing grievous hurt and convicted. The person injured afterwards dies. A may be tried again for culpable homicide.
(c) A is charged before the Court of Session and convicted of the culpable homicide of B. A may not afterwards be tried on the same facts for the murder of B.
(d) A is charged by a Magistrate of the first class with, and convicted by him of, voluntarily causing hurt to B. A may not afterwards be tried for voluntarily causing grievous hurt to B on the same facts, unless the case comes within sub-section (3) of this section.
(e) A is charged by a Magistrate of the second class with, and convicted by him of, theft of property from the person of B. A may subsequently be charged with, and tried for, robbery on the same facts.
(f) A, B and C are charged by a Magistrate of the first class with, and convicted by him of, robbing D. A, B and C may afterwards be charged with, and tried for, dacoity on the same facts.
Appearance by Public Prosecutors.