Section 150

This provision continues a long-standing rule from the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (earlier Sections 147–148). Courts often allow lawyers to ask witnesses probing or embarrassing questions to test their honesty or character. But if such a question actually touches the real facts of the dispute, the law does not let the witness dodge it by claiming self-incrimination. The idea is to prevent witnesses from using 'this might incriminate me' as a shield to avoid giving evidence that is directly needed to decide the case, while still protecting them from having that compelled testimony used against them criminally later.

• Myth: A witness can always refuse to answer any question by saying 'it might incriminate me.'
  Fact: If the question is genuinely relevant to the case, Section 150 (through Section 137) requires the witness to answer; the incrimination concern only affects whether that answer can later be used against them, not whether they must answer.