A brief introduction to Indian Evidence Act

1. INTRODUCTION
TO
INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT
PREPARED & PRESENTED BY..
M.A. SALEEM AHMED, M.A., M.L., PGDLAL
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF LAW
BHARATH INSTITUTE OF LAW
BHARATH UNIVERSITY

2. BRIEF HISTORY OF INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT, 1872
 Prior to the passing of the Indian Evidence Act the principles of English law of Evidence were practised in the
presidency towns of India and followed by the Courts.
 In Mofussil Area, Mohammedan Law of Evidence was followed for some time by the British Courts, however
subsequently various regulations which dealt with the principle of evidence, were passed for guiding the Mofussil
Courts.
 Prior to the advent of the Indian Evidence Act of 1872 there was no systematic enactment on the subject. The
rules and regulations were not fixed and the law was vague.
 In 1868, Sir Henry Sumner Maine prepared a Draft Bill of Law of Evidence but it was abandoned as its contents
were not suitable for the country.
 In 1871, Sir James Fitzjames Stephen prepared a new draft which was passed and acknowledged as Act I of
1872 and came into being as the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 and came into force from 1st September 1872.

3. LEX FORI
 Lex Fori is a legal term which means the law of the court or forum.
 Dicey and Morris on the Conflicts of Laws refer to lex fori as:
 "All matters of procedure are governed by the domestic law of the country to which the court wherein any legal
proceedings are taken for hearing and disposing of an action”
 Matters of evidence are governed by the lex fori, i.e. the law of the forum or court in which a case is tried.
 In Bain v. W. & F. Rail Co. (1850 3 H. L. С. I. ) it was stated that -
 Whether a witness is competent or not, whether a certain matter requires to be proved by writing or not,
whether certain evidence proves a certain fact or not, are all to be determined by the law of the country where
the question arises, i.e. where the remedy is sought to be enforced and where the Court sits to enforce it.

4. INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT AS “LEX FORI”
 The Indian Evidence Act is LEX FORI Law because it deals with the procedural aspects on Law of evidence.
 Hence, Indian Courts Know and apply only the Indian Law of Evidence. Because only this law governs the use
of testimony (e.g., oral or written statements) exhibits (e.g., physical objects), documentary material,
or demonstrative evidence, which are admissible (i.e., allowed to be considered by court) in a judicial proceedings
in India.
 The case of Mobarak Ali Ahmed v State of Bombay AIR 1957 SC 857 illustrates the conceptThe Indian
Evidence Act as LEX FORI .
 Mr.A at Karachi was making false representations to Mr. B, the complainant at Bombay, through letters, telegrams
and telephone talks, sometimes directly to Mr. B and sometimes through a commission agent. Mr. B parted with
money in good faith of these representations from Karachi. It was held by the supreme court of India that the
offence will be triable both at Bombay or Karachi. Since, this case was filed in Indian Court, only Indian Evidence
Act, 1872 applies even a party to the suit is a Pakistani

5. STRUCTURE OFTHE INDIAN
EVIDENCE ACT, 1872
Part I (Contains Section 1 to
55 divided in 2 Chapters and
deals with ‘Relevancy of Facts’)
• Chapter I: From Section 1
to 4 contains the preliminary
provisions.
• Chapter II: From Section 5
to 55 explains about
Relevancy of Facts.
Part III (Contains Section 101 to 167
divided in 5 Chapters and deals with
provisions on ‘Production and Effect of
Evidence’.)
• ChapterVII: From Section 101 to
114A explains about Burden of Proof.
• ChapterVIII: From Section 115 to
117 explains about Estoppel.
• Chapter IX: From Section 118 to
134 explains aboutWitnesses.
• Chapter X: From Section 135 to
166 explains about Examination of
Witnesses.
• Chapter XI: contains Section 167
that explains about Improper
Admission and Rejection of Evidence.
Part II (Contains Section 56 to 100
divided in 4 Chapters and deals with
provisions ‘On Proof’)
• Chapter III: From Section 56 to 58
explains about Facts Which Need
Not be Proved.
• Chapter IV: From Section 59 to
60 explains about Oral Evidence.
• ChapterV: From Section 61 to
90A explains about Documentary
Evidence.
• ChapterVI: From Section 91 to
100 explains about Exclusion of
Oral and Documentary Evidence.
The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 comprises of total 167 section
and 11 Chapters.This act came into force from
1st September 1872.

6. BASIC PRINCIPLES OF EVIDENCE
Indian Evidence
Act, 1872 deals
with Relevancy of
Facts, Mode of
Proof and
Production &
Effect of Evidence.
The main
principles which
underlie the law
of Evidence are-
Evidence must be
confined to the
matter in issue.
Hearsay evidence
must not be
admitted.
The Best Evidence
must be given in
all cases.

7. APPLICATION OFTHE INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT
 Section.1 of the act provides that the Indian Evidence Act is applicable to the whole of India except to the State
of Jammu and Kashmir and applies to all judicial proceedings in or before any Court, including Courts martial.
 But the Act does not apply to –
 Affidavits presented to any Court or Officer,
 Proceedings before an Arbitrator. (The Arbitrators are not bound by the strict rules of evidence which are
applicable to the Court of Law however, the Arbitrators are bound by the principles of natural justice)
 Proceedings before a Court-Martial convened under the Army Act, the Naval Discipline Act, the Indian Navy
(Discipline) Act, 1934, or the Air Force Act.
 The Law of Evidence is not applicable to non-judicial proceedings. Such as Departmental Proceedings,
Commission of Inquiry, Administrative Tribunals are bound by Principles of Natural Justice and not bound by Law
of Evidence

8. THE LAW OF EVIDENCE ISTHE SAME IN CIVIL AND
CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS
 As seen earlier, the Act applies to all judicial proceedings, civil or criminal.
 Generally speaking, the rules of evidence are the same, whether the proceeding is civil or criminal.
However, there are certain provisions of the Act (e.g. the doctrine of estoppel) which apply only to
civil proceedings. Likewise, some parts of the Act. (e.g., provisions relating to confessions) would apply
only to criminal proceedings.
 Moreover, although the rules of evidence are the same in civil and criminal proceedings, there is a
marked difference in the legal effect of evidence in civil matters when contrasted with criminal
matters.