Supreme Court Allows Production of Section 65B Certificate at Any Trial Stage in 2008 Bangalore Blasts Case 2023

Supreme Court Allows Production of Section 65B Certificate at Any Trial Stage in 2008 Bangalore Blasts Case

Case Title:

State of Karnataka v. T. Naseer @ Thadiantavida Naseer, 

Subject:

Electronic Evidence & Admissibility under Section 65B of Indian Evidence Act

Type (Nature) of Case:

Criminal Appeal – Terrorism Case (2008 Bangalore Blasts)
Evidentiary Law – Electronic Evidence

Index/Subject of Case:

Admissibility of Electronic Records

Section 65B Certificate

Recall of Witness under Section 311 CrPC

Fair Trial

Curable Defect in Evidence

Interpretation of Arjun Panditrao & Anvar P.V. Judgments

Factual Matrix:

In the 2008 Bangalore bomb blasts case, several electronic devices were seized from the accused.

A CFSL report was prepared based on these devices and submitted in 2012.

In 2017, the Trial Court refused to accept the report due to the absence of a Section 65B certificate.

The prosecution argued the certificate was unnecessary as original devices were primary evidence.

After objections from the defence, the prosecution tried to produce the certificate by recalling a witness, which was rejected.

The Karnataka High Court upheld the rejection.

The Supreme Court set aside these rulings, holding that the certificate could be submitted at any stage if the trial isn’t over, citing the Arjun Panditrao and Anvar P.V. precedents.

Relevance of Judgment:

Reaffirms that Section 65B Certificate is not mandatory if original electronic evidence is produced.

Confirms that certificate can be submitted at any stage of the trial.

Declares that non-production of the certificate is a curable defect.

Clarifies principles of fair trial—ensuring justice isn’t hindered by technicalities.

Strong precedent in cases involving digital or electronic evidence.

Relied On :

1. Arjun Panditrao Khotkar v. Kailash Kushanrao Gorantyal, Citation: (2020) 7 SCC 1

Key Holding: Certificate under Section 65B of the Indian Evidence Act can be produced at any stage of the trial, as long as the trial is not concluded.

2. Anvar P.V. v. P.K. Basheer, Citation: (2014) 10 SCC 473

Key Holding: Section 65B certificate is not required if the original electronic record/device is produced as primary evidence.

3. State of Karnataka v. M.R. Hiremath, Citation: (2019) 7 SCC 515

Key Holding: Non-production of a Section 65B certificate is a curable defect and can be rectified during the trial.