A witness in a criminal investigation is called by the police officer to give a statement. The police officer intends to record the statement in writing and have the witness sign it. Under which section of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 are statements to police regulated, and can these statements be used as direct evidence?

Section 181 of BNSS, 2023 addresses "Statements to police and use thereof". The section provides that statements made to a police officer during investigation "shall not be signed by the person making it, and no entry shall be made in any record...containing the exact words used by the person giving the statement." Critically, such statements cannot be used as direct evidence in Court. They can only be used to contradict or corroborate a witness if that witness subsequently testifies and is cross-examined. This provision protects the rights of witnesses by preventing the police from using recorded statements as conclusive evidence without the witness's testimony. Section 179 addresses the power to require witness attendance, Section 180 addresses examination of witnesses, Section 182 addresses inducements, and Section 183 addresses confession recording, but Section 181 specifically governs the nature and use of statements to police.