NEGATIVES AND NOT PHOTOS ACCEPTABLE IN COURT

Atish (Querist) 25 February 2010 This query is : Resolved
Hello,

I was told in one of my cases by my other advocate today that digital camera photos are not a case of proof in the court and you need negatives. This would affect another case of mine where I have produced 300 odd digital camera photos. The world has advanced and we all use digital cameras.
Now if this is not acceptable then what about my other cases which mainly depend on photos.
It has got nothing as prior detective appointment for the photos but natural instances which is proof sufficient.
Kindly guide as this is news to me and would not like to comment this to my advocate and confuse myself regarding him handling the other case.

Regards
Atish

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Raj Kumar Makkad (Expert) 25 February 2010
Atish! I do agree with you that technology has advanced but we are still walking in the darkness and this fact is also applicable in our profession.

Digital Photographs are duly taken in evidence now and there are no negative images in this process.

Devajyoti Barman (Expert) 25 February 2010
In the context of recent amendments in The Evidence Act, the digitised/electronic articles are very much admissible in evidence and if the opposite side raises any objections with regard to its authenticity then the court is also open for its proper verification by Appropriate Authority.

Parveen Kr. Aggarwal (Expert) 26 February 2010
After the amendments made to the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 in pursuance of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (No. 21 of 2000) with effect from 17.10.2000, even photographs drawn through a digital camera are admissible in evidence provided the procedure prescribed therefor is complied with. Newly inserted Sections 65-A and 65-B of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 are relevant for the purpose and as such, are reproduced hereunder:

"65A. Special provisions as to evidence relating to electronic record. The contents of electronic records may be proved in accordance with the provisions of section 65B".

"65B. Admissibility of electronic records. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, any information contained in an electronic record which is printed on a paper, stored, recorded or copied in optical or magnetic media produced by a computer (hereinafter referred to as the computer output) shall be deemed to be also a document, if the conditions mentioned in this section are satisfied in relation to the information and computer in question and shall be admissible in any proceedings, without further proof or production of the original, as evidence of any contents of the original or of any fact stated therein of which direct evidence would be admissible.
(2) The conditions referred to in sub-section (1) in respect of a computer output shall be the following, namely: -

(a) the computer output containing the information was produced by the computer during the period over which the computer was used regularly to store or process information for the purposes of any activities regularly carried on over that period by the person having lawful control over the use of the computer;
(b) during the said period, information of the kind contained in the electronic record or of the kind from which the information so contained is derived was regularly fed into the computer in the ordinary course of the said activities;
(c) throughout the material part of the said period, the computer was operating properly or, if not, then in respect of any period in which it was not operating properly or was out of operation during that part of the period, was not such as to affect the electronic record or the accuracy of its contents; and
(d) the information contained in the electronic record reproduces or is derived from such information fed into the computer in the ordinary course of the said activities."