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2019 Supreme(Gau) 635

ACHINTYA MALLA BUJOR BARUA, AJIT BORTHAKUR
Mamata Bhowmik – Appellant
Versus
Union of India – Respondent


Advocates:
Advocate Appeared:
For the Appellant :S.C. Biswas, Advocate

Judgement Key Points

Based on the provided legal document, the key points regarding the admissibility of electronic records, specifically digital signatures on official documents like voter lists, are as follows:

  1. The document in question, a voter list from 1966, was digitally signed by an authorized individual, which under the relevant law, qualifies it as a certified electronic record that can be considered a valid document in legal proceedings (!) (!) .

  2. The law states that electronic records produced by a computer, if they satisfy certain conditions, are deemed admissible as evidence without requiring the original document (!) (!) .

  3. A certificate under the law, which identifies the electronic record, describes its production, and is signed by a responsible official, is necessary for its admissibility (!) (!) (!) .

  4. The signature of a responsible official can be a digital signature, which is defined and recognized under the relevant law as an authenticated electronic signature (!) (!) .

  5. The case clarifies that the signature of a responsible official does not necessarily need to be physically signed; a valid digital signature, especially when issued by an authorized service provider, suffices (!) (!) .

  6. The court emphasizes that the digital signature on the voter list was issued by an entity recognized under the applicable electronic service delivery rules, thus satisfying the legal requirement for a responsible official’s signature (!) (!) .

  7. Consequently, the tribunal's previous rejection of the voter list’s evidentiary value was contrary to the law, and the record should be admitted as valid evidence (!) (!) .

  8. The case underscores that electronic records with proper digital signatures, issued in accordance with the law, are admissible and carry evidentiary weight comparable to traditional documents, leading to the remand for a fresh adjudication (!) (!) .

In summary, electronic records, including voter lists with digital signatures from authorized service providers, are legally admissible as evidence when they meet the statutory criteria, and the absence of physical signatures does not invalidate such documents if they are properly signed and certified under applicable laws.


JUDGMENT :

ACHINTYA MALLA BUJOR BARUA, J.

1. Heard Mr. S.C. Biswas, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. A.I. Ali, learned counsel for the Election Commission of India, Mr. A. Kalita, learned counsel for the State of Assam appearing for the Foreigners' Tribunal and Border Areas, Ms. A. Verma, learned standing counsel for the authorities under the NRC as well as Ms. G. Sarma, learned counsel for the authorities under the Union of India.

2. On being referred by the Superintendent of Police, (Border) Sonitpur, Case No. F.T. (IMDT) 92/2016 was registered in the Foreigners Tribunal 7th, Tezpur, Balipara. In the proceeding amongst others, the petitioner exhibited the voter list of 1966 of village Lokhopara, Mouza-Missamari, Sub-division-Tezpur (Sadar) containing the name of Bijendra Sarkar Son of Jamini aged 48 years in order to establish that Bijendra Sarkar is the father of the petitioner. The Exhibit-4 voter list of 1966 is a certified copy of the electoral roll of 1966 and it contains the signature of the approving authority with the following:-

"Signature valid

Digitally signed by Prabir Kumar Dutta

Date: 2016.09.27 16:26:31 IST

Reason: e-District Portal

Location: Assam"

3. Apa

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