The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) has come out strongly against a notification issued on August 13, 2025, by the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, which designates video-conference rooms in police stations as authorized venues for recording the testimony of police officials.
In a resolution adopted on August 22, 2025, the SCBA President Vikas Singh and the Executive Committee described the measure as arbitrary, legally unsustainable, and contrary to principles of natural justice.
The Association cautioned that the move would erode the sanctity of judicial proceedings and may seriously compromise the fairness of trials. Stressing on its wider implications, the resolution observed that “such a notification gravely undermines judicial independence and the fair administration of justice, besides being against public interest".
Invoking its “strongest condemnation,” the SCBA has formally urged the authorities to withdraw the notification forthwith in order to safeguard the rule of law and integrity of judicial processes.
The impugned notification was issued under the second proviso to Section 265(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which permits examination of witnesses via audio-visual electronic means at a place notified by the State. Relying on this provision, the Delhi LG directed that all 226 police stations across the capital be designated as such venues, thereby enabling police officials to depose virtually before courts from within police premises.
The move has sparked sharp opposition not only from the SCBA but also from the bar associations of the Delhi High Court and trial courts, who have warned that the step dilutes procedural safeguards and places the neutrality of evidence at risk.
The controversy has now reignited debate over the scope of virtual evidence mechanisms under the BNSS, raising fundamental concerns about their compatibility with judicial independence, due process, and the rights of litigants.
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