Amendment status not verified — confirm the current text below against the official source.
Proof of exception. - It is true that the burden of proving the exception on the part of the accused is not so heavy as the burden on the prosecution to prove its case beyond all reasonable doubt. At the sarI6e time, the defence has to make out a prima facie case to bring its case within the exception. Where an accused claims the benefit of an exception the burden lies on him to prove the exception, but this burden is only to be undertaken if the prosecution case establishes that in the absence of such a plea he would be guilty of the offence. Where there is no reliable evidence in support of prosecution case and where the responsibility arose only out of the pleas raised by him the court could convict him only if the plea amounted to a confession of the guilt, but if the plea only amounted to admission of facts and raised a plea of justification the court could not a pa of the prosecution case was proved and the evidence did not warrant the plea of justification. Where an accused pleads an exception he must justify his plea but the degree and character of proof which he is expected to furnish cannot be equated with that which is expected from prosecution. Thus onus on the accused may well be compared to the onus on a party in civil proceedings; so must a criminal court hold the plea made by the accused proved, if preponderance or probability is established by the evidence by him.