Confrontation of witness with photocopy of a document?

Legal Fighter (Querist) 30 April 2012 This query is : Resolved
Can a witness be confronted using photocopy of a document during cross-examination? The document is witness's own statement on some other proceeding.

Please provide relevent citations as well.

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ajay sethi (Expert) 30 April 2012
academic query

Deepak Nair (Expert) 30 April 2012
The witness can be confronted. But, the photocopy shall be proved by producing original to make it admissible as evidence.

Legal Fighter (Querist) 30 April 2012
any case law?

adv. rajeev ( rajoo ) (Expert) 30 April 2012
instead of photocopy you can obtain the certified copy

Nadeem Qureshi (Expert) 30 April 2012
Dear Querist
According to section 63 of the indian Evidence act,1872
63. Secondary Evidence -

Secondary evidence means and includes.

1. Certified copies given under the provisions hereinafter contained;

2. Copies made from the original by mechanical processes which in themselves insure the accuracy of the copy and copies compared with such copies;

3. Copies made from or compared with the original;

4. Counterparts of documents as against the parties who did not execute them;

5. Oral accounts of the contents of a document given by some person who has himself seen it.

Illustrations

(a) A photograph of an original is secondary evidence of its contents, though the two have not been compared, if it is proved that the thing photographed was the original.

(b) A copy compared with a copy of a letter made by copying machine is secondary evidence of the contents of the letter, if it is shown that the copy made by the copying machine was made from the original.

(c) A copy transcribed from a copy, but afterwards compared with the original, is secondary evidence, but the copy not so compared is not secondary evidence of the original, although the copy from which it was transcribed was compared with the original.

(d) Neither an oral account of a copy compared with the original, nor an oral account of a photo graph or machine copy of the original, is secondary evidence of the original.

COMMENTS

Admissibility

Application moved for permission to lead secondary evidence based on ground of loss of document. Presence of document proved from the facts pleaded - Allowing secondary evidence not illegal; Sobha Rani v. Ravikumar, AIR 1999 P&H 21.

Tape-recorded statements are admissible in evidence; K.S. Mohan v. Sandhya Mohan, AIR 1993 Mad 59.

Certified copies of money lender’s licences are admissible in evidence;

K. Shivalingaiah v. B.V. Chandrashekara Gowda, AIR 1993 Kant 29.

In case of a photocopy of a document before it is admitted in evidence it has be explained as to what were the circumstances under which the photostate copy was prepared and who was in possession of original document at the time its photograph was taken and this should be above suspicions. (Ashok v. Madhava Lal, AIR 1975 SC 1748)
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