IN THE HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH AT INDORE BEFORE HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE SUBODH ABHYANKAR th ON THE 19 OF JANUARY, 2026 MISC. CRIMINAL CASE No. 56819 of 2025 RAJKUMAR SALVI Versus THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH WITH MISC. CRIMINAL CASE No. 56821 of 2025 RAJKUMAR SALVI Versus THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH WITH MISC. CRIMINAL CASE No. 56827 of 2025 RAJKUMAR SALVI Versus THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH WITH MISC. CRIMINAL CASE No. 56830 of 2025 RAJKUMAR SALVI Versus THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH WITH MISC. CRIMINAL CASE No. 56831 of 2025 RAJKUMAR SALVI Versus THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH WITH MISC. CRIMINAL CASE No. 56833 of 2025 RAJKUMAR SALVI Versus THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH Appearance:

Shri Aniruddha Gokhale- Advocate for the petitioner/Rajkumar Salvi.

Shri Aditya Garg- Govt. Advocate for the respondent/State.

ORDER

1] This order shall also govern the disposal of M.Cr.C. Nos. 56819/2025, 56821/2025, 56827/2025,56830/2025,56831/2025 and

56833/2025 regard being had to the similitude of the issue involved.

2] All these petitions have been filed by the petitioner/Raj Kumar Salvi under Section 482 of Cr.P.C./Section 528 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 challenging the orders dated 29/10/2025, 31/10/2025, 29/10/2025, 31/10/2025, 30/10/2025, 29/10/2025 respectivly, passed by the learned Court of XXII of Additional Sessions Judge, Indore District Indore in S.T.No.547/2024, S.T.No.668/2024, S.T.No.578/2024, S.T.No.577/2024, S.T.No.576/2024, S.T.No.579/2024, respectively; whereby, the applications filed in each case by the prosecution under Section 63 of the Evidence Act of 1872 (hereinafter to be referred to as the “Act of

1872”), for leading the secondary evidence, has been allowed.

3] In brief, the facts of the case are that the petitioner is facing the aforesaid trial in connection with Crime Nos.134/2024- (S.T.No.547/2024), Crime No.147/2024-(S.T.No.576/2024), Crime No.148/2024- (S.T.No.579/2024), CrimeNo.149/2024 (S.T.No.478/2024), Crime No.156/2024 (S.T.No.577/2024), Crime No.171/2024 (S.T.No.621/2024) & Crime No.190/2024 (S.T.No.668/2024) for the offences punishable under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 474, 409, 120-B, 34 of IPC at Police Station M.G.

Road, District Indore.

4] Admittedly, the aforesaid trial is at the stage of recording of the evidence, and on 31/7/2025, the prosecution filed an application under Section 63 of the Act of 1872, with a prayer that the photocopies of the documents mentioned under para 3 of the application may be taken on record as secondary evidence, on the ground, that the original documents have been lost from the possession of Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC), and despite best efforts to retrieve the same, the documents could not be found. The prayer was opposed by the petitioner, however, the learned judge has allowed the same vide its orders dated 29/10/2025, 31/10/2025, 29/10/2025, 31/10/2025, 30/10/2025 and 29/10/2025 respectively which are under challenge before this Court.

5] Shri Aniruddha Gokhale, learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that the learned judge of the trial Court has allowed the photocopies of the documents which have already been lost, to be received in evidence which would seriously prejudice the case of the petitioner as the prosecution has not filed the application narrating all the relevant factors for accepting the photocopies of the documents as secondary evidence.

6] Learned counsel for the petitioner has also submitted that for filing an application u/s.63 of the Act of 1872 the two requisite conditions are; (i) that the photocopies were made from mechanical process (ii) the copies were compared with the original, but both these conditions have not been complied with, in such circumstances, the impugned orders are liable to be quashed.

7] Counsel for the petitioner has also relied upon a decision rendered by this Court in the case of Narendra Kumar Vs. Deepchand and others passed in M.P.No.1971/2022 order dated 6/9/2023 where the original documents were lost and