Key points of Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam which will replace Indian Evidence Act

Following are the key points of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA)-2023, which was passed by the Lok Sabha on Wednesday and seeks to replace the Indian Evidence Act of 1872.

* Two new sections and six new sub-sections have been added in the proposed law * Five new explanations are added, four explanations deleted * Two new provisos are added, 24 provisions are modified * Total six sections are deleted Major Changes: * Electronic record included in the definition of 'document' * Statements received electronically included in the definition of 'evidence' * Added more standards for considering electronic and digital records as primary evidence laying emphasis on its proper custody, storage, transmission, and broadcast * Added more kinds of secondary evidence to include oral and written admissions and evidence of a skilled person to examine documents which cannot conveniently be examined by court.

* Established the legal admissibility, validity, and enforceability of electronic or digital record as evidence * Inclusion of husband/wife as competent witness in criminal proceedings against the spouse * Conviction based on corroborated testimony of accomplice has been made legal * Comprehensive certificate for submitting electronic evidence added in the schedule Minor Changes: * References to colonial terminology done away with * Language modernized and made gender sensitive.

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