Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023

Context- Recently, the Union Home Minister introduced the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023.

Key Highlights 

• The Bharatiya Sakshya Bill to repeal the existing Indian Evidence Act, 1872.  
• The draft law allows electronic or digital documents to be accepted as evidence, thus having the same legal effect as paper documents.  
• It repeals five existing provisions of the Evidence Act, amends 23 provisions and adds one new provision.  
• The bill proposes  to amend section 23  and there are a total of 170 sections. 
• The bill expands secondary evidence to include mechanical copies of originals, equivalents of documents, and oral explanations of the content of documents. 
• With the bill, the government wants to establish precise and uniform rules for the use of evidence during the hearing of cases. 

Goals and need 

• India’s evidence-gathering law was struck down because it “does not take into account the technological developments that have taken place in the country in recent decades”. 
• The purpose of the new draft law is to adapt the laws to the current needs and desires of people. 
• Its purpose is “to consolidate and present the  general rules and principles of a fair trial”

Key Provisions and Changes in the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023

• Admissibility of electronic documents: The new bill allows electronic or digital documents to be accepted as evidence, giving them  the same legal weight as traditional paper documents. 
• Repeal, amendment and addition of provisions: The Bharatiya Sakshya Bill repeals five  provisions of the old Evidence Act, amends 23 provisions and adds one entirely new provision, resulting in a total of 170 sections. 
• Expanding the scope of secondary evidence: The Bill expands the scope of secondary evidence by allowing  copies made by mechanical processes, equivalents of documents and oral explanations of the content of documents. 
• Clear and uniform rules: One of the main goals of the bill is to create clear and consistent rules for handling  evidence during  criminal proceedings. 

Rationale of the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill

• The government’s motivation to introduce the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill stems from the observation that India’s current evidence law is inadequate for the technological advancements and social changes that have occurred in recent decades. 
• By replacing the outdated law with a modern and comprehensive bill, the government wants to ensure that the provisions related to evidence are in line with current requirements.

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