§ SECTION 63 · BSA 2023 · CHAPTER V — DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE
Admissibility of electronic records
The machinery § 62 pointed to. Computer output is deemed a document and admissible without the original — if four conditions hold, distributed devices count as one, and a signed certificate accompanies the record each time.
How to read Section 63
One deeming rule, resting on conditions and a certificate.
(1) Deemed a document
Computer output is admissible without the original — if the conditions hold.
(2)–(3) Conditions
Four cumulative conditions; many devices treated as one.
(4) Certificate
A signed certificate (person in charge + expert) each time — Schedule form.
The bare Act
The section in its own words — the deeming rule, the conditions, the combined-computer rule, the certificate, and the definitions.
Section 63 · verbatim
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Adhiniyam, any information contained in an electronic record which is printed on paper, stored, recorded or copied in optical or magnetic media or semiconductor memory which is produced by a computer or any communication device or otherwise stored, recorded or copied in any electronic form (hereinafter referred to as the computer output) shall be deemed to be also 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 proceedings, without further proof or production of the original, as evidence or any contents of the original or of any fact stated therein of which direct evidence would be admissible.
(2) The conditions referred to in sub-section (1) in respect of a computer output shall be the following, namely:—
(a) the computer output containing the information was produced by the computer or communication device during the period over which the computer or Communication device was used regularly to create, store or process information for the purposes of any activity regularly carried on over that period by the person having lawful control over the use of the computer or communication device;
(b) during the said 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 or Communication device in the ordinary course of the said activities;
(c) throughout the material part of the said period, the computer or communication device was operating properly or, if not, then in respect of any period in which it was not operating properly or was out of operation during that part of the period, was not such as to affect the electronic record or the accuracy of its contents; and
(d) the information contained in the electronic record reproduces or is derived from such information fed into the computer or Communication device in the ordinary course of the said activities.
(3) Where over any period, the function of creating, storing or processing information for the purposes of any activity regularly carried on over that period as mentioned in clause (a) of sub-section (2) was regularly performed by means of one or more computers or communication device, whether—
(a) in standalone mode; or
(b) on a computer system; or
(c) on a computer network; or
(d) on a computer resource enabling information creation or providing information processing and storage; or
(e) through an intermediary,
all the computers or communication devices used for that purpose during that period shall be treated for the purposes of this section as constituting a single computer or communication device; and references in this section to a computer or communication device 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 doing any of the following things shall be submitted along with the electronic record at each instance where it is being submitted for admission, namely:—
(a) identifying the 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 electronic record as may be appropriate for the purpose of showing that the electronic record was produced by a computer or a communication device referred to in clauses (a) to (e) of sub-section (3);
(c) dealing with any of the matters to which the conditions mentioned in sub-section (2) relate,
and purporting to be signed by a person in charge of the computer or communication device or the management of the relevant activities (whichever is appropriate) and an expert shall be evidence of any matter stated in the certificate; and for the purposes of this sub-section it shall be sufficient for a matter to be stated to the best of the knowledge and belief of the person stating it in the certificate specified in the Schedule.(5) For the purposes of this section,—
(a) information shall be taken to be supplied to a computer or communication device if it is supplied thereto in any appropriate form and whether it is so supplied directly or (with or without human intervention) by means of any appropriate equipment;
(b) a computer output shall be taken to have been produced by a computer or communication device whether it was produced by it directly or (with or without human intervention) by means of any appropriate equipment or by other electronic means as referred to in clauses (a) to (e) of sub-section (3).
In short: § 63 is the working heart of electronic evidence. Sub-section (1) deems any computer output a document, admissible without the original, if the conditions hold. Sub-section (2) sets the four cumulative conditions — regular use, regular feeding, proper operation, and derivation from that data. Sub-section (3) lets a distributed system (standalone, system, network, resource, or intermediary) count as a single computer. Sub-section (4) makes a signed certificate the practical gate — identifying the record, describing the device, and addressing the conditions, signed by a person in charge and an expert, in the Schedule form, at each instance of submission. Sub-section (5) reads ‘supplied’ and ‘produced’ broadly, keeping the section technology-neutral.
→ The BSA successor to the former § 65B (electronic records) — now with the certificate expressly requiring an expert and tied to the Schedule.
Glossary
computer output
E-information printed, stored or copied on any media — deemed a document.
deemed a document
Treated in law as a document, admissible without the original.
lawful control
The person entitled to control the computer’s use (condition a).
operating properly
Working, or any fault not affecting the record’s accuracy (condition c).
single computer
Distributed devices treated as one for this section (sub-section 3).
certificate
The signed statement (person in charge + expert) required at each submission.
the Schedule
The prescribed form the certificate must follow.
intermediary
An entity through which information passes — still within the single-computer rule.
The picture
The whole § 63 machine, at a glance.
The section, part by part
Five groups — tap each. Every sub-section and clause is shown in its own words with a plain meaning.
sub-section (1)Computer output is deemed a document
In one lineAny computer output — e-information printed, stored or copied on any media — is deemed a document and admissible without the original, if this section’s conditions are satisfied.
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Adhiniyam, any information contained in an electronic record which is printed on paper, stored, recorded or copied in optical or magnetic media or semiconductor memory which is produced by a computer or any communication device or otherwise stored, recorded or copied in any electronic form (hereinafter referred to as the computer output) shall be deemed to be also 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 proceedings, without further proof or production of the original, as evidence or any contents of the original or of any fact stated therein of which direct evidence would be admissible.(1) the DEEMING ruleany computer output (e-info printed, stored or copied on any media) is deemed a document and is admissible without producing the original, if this section’s conditions are met.
ExampleA printout of bank transaction logs, or a copy of CCTV footage, is admissible as a document without producing the original server — provided § 63’s conditions and certificate are met.
✗ Not thisThe deeming is conditional — “if the conditions mentioned in this section are satisfied”. No conditions and no certificate means no automatic admissibility.
sub-section (2)The four conditions — all must hold
In one lineFour cumulative conditions: the computer was in regular use (a), the information was regularly fed in (b), it was operating properly (c), and the output is derived from that data (d).
(2) The conditions referred to in sub-section (1) in respect of a computer output shall be the following, namely:—(2) the four conditionsthe conditions for a computer output are:
(a) the computer output containing the information was produced by the computer or communication device during the period over which the computer or Communication device was used regularly to create, store or process information for the purposes of any activity regularly carried on over that period by the person having lawful control over the use of the computer or communication device;(a) computer in REGULAR usethe output was produced while the computer/device was in regular use for an activity by the person in lawful control.
(b) during the said 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 or Communication device in the ordinary course of the said activities;(b) info REGULARLY FED ininformation of that kind was regularly fed in in the ordinary course of that activity.
(c) throughout the material part of the said period, the computer or communication device was operating properly or, if not, then in respect of any period in which it was not operating properly or was out of operation during that part of the period, was not such as to affect the electronic record or the accuracy of its contents; and(c) OPERATING PROPERLYthe device was operating properly throughout — or any malfunction did not affect the record or its accuracy.
(d) the information contained in the electronic record reproduces or is derived from such information fed into the computer or Communication device in the ordinary course of the said activities.(d) output DERIVED from that infothe record reproduces or is derived from the information so fed in, in the ordinary course.
ExampleA company’s sales database run daily in the ordinary course (a, b), functioning normally (c), and a printout drawn from that very data (d) — the conditions are met.
✗ Not thisAll four are cumulative. A malfunction is forgiven only if it did not affect the record’s accuracy (c); a computer not in regular use fails (a) outright.
sub-section (3)Many computers, treated as one
In one lineWhere one activity ran across several computers or devices — standalone, a system, a network, a resource, or through an intermediary — they are all treated as a single computer.
(3) Where over any period, the function of creating, storing or processing information for the purposes of any activity regularly carried on over that period as mentioned in clause (a) of sub-section (2) was regularly performed by means of one or more computers or communication device, whether–(3) one activity, several devices…where the activity used one or more computers/devices — whether…
(a) in standalone mode; or(a) standalone…standalone; or
(b) on a computer system; or(b) a computer system…on a computer system; or
(c) on a computer network; or(c) a computer network…on a computer network; or
(d) on a computer resource enabling information creation or providing information processing and storage; or(d) a computer resource…on a computer resource (creation / processing / storage); or
(e) through an intermediary,(e) through an intermediary…through an intermediary,
all the computers or communication devices used for that purpose during that period shall be treated for the purposes of this section as constituting a single computer or communication device; and references in this section to a computer or communication device shall be construed accordingly.→ all treated as ONE device— all of them are treated as a single computer/device for this section.
ExampleRecords generated across a company’s networked servers and a cloud intermediary are treated as the output of a single computer for § 63.
✗ Not thisThe single-computer fiction does not lower the bar — it lets a distributed system satisfy the (2) conditions as a unit; the conditions still apply to the whole.
sub-section (4)The certificate — the practical gate
In one lineA certificate must be submitted with the record, every time it is tendered — identifying it (a), giving device particulars (b), and addressing the (2) conditions (c) — signed by a person in charge and an expert.
(4) In any proceeding where it is desired to give a statement in evidence by virtue of this section, a certificate doing any of the following things shall be submitted along with the electronic record at each instance where it is being submitted for admission, namely:–(4) a CERTIFICATE, every timeto use a statement under this section, a certificate must accompany the record every time it is submitted, which:
(a) identifying the electronic record containing the statement and describing the manner in which it was produced;(a) identify record & how producedidentifies the record and describes how it was produced;
(b) giving such particulars of any device involved in the production of that electronic record as may be appropriate for the purpose of showing that the electronic record was produced by a computer or a communication device referred to in clauses (a) to (e) of sub-section (3);(b) device particulars (per (3))gives the device particulars showing production per (3)(a)–(e);
(c) dealing with any of the matters to which the conditions mentioned in sub-section (2) relate,(c) address the (2) conditionsdeals with the sub-section (2) conditions,
and purporting to be signed by a person in charge of the computer or communication device or the management of the relevant activities (whichever is appropriate) and an expert shall be evidence of any matter stated in the certificate; and for the purposes of this sub-section it shall be sufficient for a matter to be stated to the best of the knowledge and belief of the person stating it in the certificate specified in the Schedule.signed by person-in-charge + an EXPERT— and is signed by a person in charge and an expert; it is evidence of what it states, and may be to the best of the signer’s knowledge and belief, in the Schedule form.
ExampleTendering the printout, the party files a certificate in the Schedule form: identifying the file, describing the server, addressing the four conditions — signed by the IT manager and an expert.
✗ Not thisThe certificate is mandatory and per-instance — “at each instance where it is being submitted”. One earlier certificate does not cover a later submission; and both signatures (person in charge and expert) are required.
sub-section (5)How ‘supplied’ and ‘produced’ are read
In one lineTwo definitions keep the section technology-neutral: information is ‘supplied’ and output is ‘produced’ whether directly or through equipment, with or without human intervention.
(5) For the purposes of this section,—(5) two definitionsfor this section:
(a) information shall be taken to be supplied to a computer or communication device if it is supplied thereto in any appropriate form and whether it is so supplied directly or (with or without human intervention) by means of any appropriate equipment;(a) ‘supplied’ to a computerinformation is ‘supplied’ whether fed directly or via equipment, with or without human intervention.
(b) a computer output shall be taken to have been produced by a computer or communication device whether it was produced by it directly or (with or without human intervention) by means of any appropriate equipment or by other electronic means as referred to in clauses (a) to (e) of sub-section (3).(b) ‘produced’ by a computera computer output is ‘produced’ whether directly or via equipment / other electronic means (per (3)).
ExampleData entered by a scanner (equipment, no keying) is still ‘supplied’; a report generated by an automated pipeline is still ‘produced’.
✗ Not thisDo not read ‘produced by a computer’ narrowly — automated and equipment-mediated outputs count, so long as the (3) routes are satisfied.
Connected provisions
lineage
Former § 65B
The electronic-records regime — now with an expert and the Schedule.