MeitY notifies six new electronic evidence examiners

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on July 9 designated six laboratories across five states as authorised examiners of electronic evidence under Section 79A of the Information Technology Act, 2000. These labs can now provide professional opinions on digital evidence to courts, making such evidence legally admissible.

Five of the six labs will handle computer and mobile device forensics. The Border Security Force's Central Drone Forensic Lab in Delhi is the only lab notified for drone forensics. The other labs include the Central Forensic Science Laboratory in Kolkata, the Directorate of Forensic Science Laboratories in Mumbai, the National Forensic Sciences University in Goa, the Cyber Forensic Laboratory in New Delhi, and the Cyber Forensic Division in Jaipur.

The notifications come amid a legal framework where Section 63 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 requires a two-part certificate for admitting digital evidence. The Madras High Court had earlier noted that only a handful of entities were notified, with none in Tamil Nadu, potentially denying access to justice. The Supreme Court has upheld the hash-value requirement but suggested courts may also accept private experts if satisfied of their expertise.