The requirement of producing a certificate arises when the electronic record is sought to be used as evidence.
May 13, 2019:
Supreme Court has held that failure to produce a certificate under Section 65B(4) of the Evidence Act at the stage when the charge-sheet was filed is not fatal.
A bench of Justice Chandrachud and Justice Gupta has passed the order in the case titled as State vs M. R. Hiremath on 01.05.2019.
While quashing a corruption case, the High Court had assumed that certificate for electronic evidence since was not produced earlier the case of prosecution was liable to fail. When the matter reached the Supreme Court, it noted the assumption as "The fundamental basis on which the High Court proceeded to quash the proceedings is its hypothesis that Section 65B, which requires the production of a certificate for leading secondary evidence of an electronic record mandate the production of such a certificate at this stage in the absence of which, the case of the prosecution is liable to fail".
The the Supreme Court commented as "Section 65B(4) is attracted in any proceedings “where it is desired to give a statement in evidence by virtue of this section”. Emphasising this facet of sub-section (4) the decision in Anvar holds that the requirement of producing a certificate arises when the electronic record is sought to be used as evidence".
The Supreme Court held as "Having regard to the above principle of law, the High Court erred in coming to the conclusion that the failure to produce a certificate under Section 65B(4) of the Evidence Act at the stage when the charge-sheet was filed was fatal to the prosecution. The need for production of such a certificate would arise when the electronic record is sought to be produced in evidence at the trial. It is at that stage that the necessity of the production of the certificate would arise".
Read the order here:
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