Section 84 Evidence Act 2011
Table of Contents
ToggleSection 84 Evidence Act 2011 is titled ‘Admissibility of statement in document produced by compute‘. It is under Part V (DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE) of the Act. It states as follows:
(1) In any proceeding a statement contained in a document produced by a computer shall be admissible as evidence of any fact stated in it of which direct oral evidence would be admissible, if it is shown that the conditions in subsection (2) of this section are satisfied in relation to the statement and computer in question.
(2) The conditions referred to in subsection (l ) of this section are-
(a) that the document or electronic records containing the statement was produced by the computer during a 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, whether for profit or not by anybody, whether corporate or not, or by any individual;
(b) that during the 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 activities;
(c) that throughout the material part of that period the computer was operating properly or, if not, that in any respect in which it was not operating properly or was out of operation during that part of that period was not such as to affect the production of the document or electronic records or the accuracy of its contents; and
(d) that the information contained in the statement or electronic records reproduces or is derived from information supplied to the computer in the ordinary course of those activities.
(3) Where over a period the function of storing or processing information for the purposes of
any activities regularly carried on over that period as mentioned in subsection (2) (a) of this
section was regularly performed by computers, whether-
(a) by a combination of computers operating over that period;
(b) by different computers operating in succession over that period:
(c) by different combinations of computers operating in succession over that
period; or
(d) in any other manner involving the successive operation over that period, in whatever order. of one or more computers and one or more combinations of computers.
all the computers used for that purpose during that period shall be treated for the purposes of this section as constituting a single computer; and references in this section to a computer shall be construed accordingly.
(4) In any proceeding where it is desired to give a statement in evidence by virtue of this
section, a certificate -.
(a) identifying the document or electronic record containing the statement and describing the manner in which it was produced;
(b) giving such particulars of any device involved in the production of that document or electronic record as may be appropriate for the purpose of showing that the document was produced by a computer:
(c) dealing with any of the matters to which the conditions mentioned in subsection (2) above relate, and purporting to be signed by a person occupying a responsible position in relation to the operation of the relevant device or the management of the relevant activities, as the case may be shall be evidence of the matter stated in the certificate: and for the purpose of this subsection it shall be sufficient for a matter to be stated to the best of the knowledge and belief of the person stating it.
(5) For the purposes of this section-
(a) information shall be taken to be supplied to a computer if it is supplied to it in any appropriate form and whether it is supplied directly or (with or without human intervention) by means of any appropriate equipment:
(b) where, in the course or activities carried on by any individual or body, information is supplied with a view to its being stored or processed for the purposes of those activities by a computer operated otherwise than in the course of those activities, that information, if duly supplied to that computer, shall be taken to be supplied to it in the course of those activities;
(c) a document or electronic record shall be taken to have been produced by a computer whether it was produced by it directly or (with or without human intervention) by means of any appropriate equipment.
Section 84A Evidence Act 2011
Information in electronic form
Where any law provides that information or any other matter shall be in writing or in the typewritten or printed form, then, notwithstanding anything contained in such law, such requirement shall be deemed to have been satisfied if such information or matter is —
(a) rendered or made available in an electronic form; and
(b) accessible so as to be usable for a subsequent reference.
Section 84B Evidence Act 2011
Records in a computer to be admissible
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 or cloud computing or database produced by a computer shall be deemed to also be 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 proceeding, without further proof or production of the original, as evidence or any contents of the
original or of any fact stated in it of which direct evidence would be admissible.
Section 84C Evidence Act 2011
Authentication of electronic record
(1) Subject to the provisions of this section any person may authenticate an electronic record by affixing his digital signature on it.
(2) A person may authenticate any electronic record by such digital signature or electronic authentication technique which —
(a) is considered reliable; or
(b) may be specified by this Act.
(3) For the purpose of this subsection (2), any digital signature or electronic authentication technique will be considered reliable
if —
(a) the signature creation data or the authentication data are, within the context in which they are used, linked to the signatory or, as the case may be, the authenticator and of no other person;
(b) any alteration to the digital signature made after affixing such signature is detectable;
(c) any alteration to the information made after its authentication by the digital signature is detectable; and
(d) it fulfils such other conditions which may be prescribed.
Section 84D Evidence Act 2011
Proof of digital signature
(1) Except in the case of a secure digital signature, if the digital signature of any person is alleged to have been affixed to an electronic record, the fact that such digital signature is the digital signature of the person must be proved.
(2) A digital signature shall be deemed to be secure if the signature creation data —
(a) at the time of affixing the signature, was under the exclusive control of the signatory and no other person; and
(b) was stored and affixed in such exclusive manner as may be prescribed.”
Credit: