BSA Section 88: Presumption as to certified copies of foreign judicial records (formerly IEA 86)
Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 · in force from 1 July 2024
BSA 88: Presumption as to certified copies of foreign judicial records
From 1 July 2024
(1) The Court may presume that any document purporting to be a certified copy of any judicial record of any country beyond India is genuine and accurate, if the document purports to be certified in any manner which is certified by any representative of the Central Government in or for such country to be the manner commonly in use in that country for the certification of copies of judicial records.
(2) An officer who, with respect to any territory or place outside India is a Political Agent therefor, as defined in clause (43) of section 3 of the General Clauses Act, 1897, shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to be a representative of the Central Government in and for the country comprising that territory or place.
What it replaced in the Evidence Act
BSA 88 ← IEA 86 · Presumption as to certified copies of foreign judicial recordsChanged
BPR&D's comparison records a change. Read what changed before relying on the old wording.
What changed, per BPR&D: "any country not forming part of India or of Her Majesty’s Dominions" is replaced by "beyond India".
Printed in both official correspondence tables (BPR&D and NCRB).
The Court may presume that any document purporting to be a certified copy of any judicial record of [ * * * any country not forming part of India or] of Her Majesty’s Dominions is genuine and accurate, if the document purports to be certified in any manner which is certified by any representative of * * * the [Central Government] [in or for] [such country] to be the manner commonly in use in [that country] for the certification of of judicial records. [An officer who, with respect to *** any territory or place not forming part of [India or] Her Majesty’s Dominions, is a Political Agent there for, as defined in section 3, [clause (43)], of the General Clauses Act, 1897 (10 of 1897), shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to be a representative of the [Central Government] [in and for the country] comprising that territory or place].
Which one applies
Under section 170(2) of the BSA, an application, trial, inquiry, investigation, proceeding or appeal already pending on 1 July 2024 is dealt with under the Evidence Act; one begun on or after that date, under the BSA.
Read BSA section 170 →Judgments decided under IEA 86
They remain the law on IEA 86. Where the provision changed in the move, read what changed before relying on one for an offence after 1 July 2024.
Sources
- Correspondence Table and Comparison Summary of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 to the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, Bureau of Police Research & Development, Ministry of Home Affairs, page 8.
- Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023: bare Act with Corresponding Section Table, National Crime Records Bureau (Sankalan), page 18.
- The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (Act 1 of 1872), as amended, India Code, Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice.
BPR&D is the Bureau of Police Research & Development (Ministry of Home Affairs); NCRB the National Crime Records Bureau. Their correspondence tables are training aids, not law. This page is general information, not legal advice on any case; the bare Acts as published by the Government of India are the authority.