The cabinet has approved in principle the draft of the "Evidence (Amendment) Act, 2022" to form a legal shape for the submission of digital evidence before the court.
The approval came at the weekly cabinet meeting held at Bangladesh Secretariat on Monday with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair. The premier joined it virtually from Ganabhaban, while her cabinet colleagues and others were present at the meeting room of the Cabinet Division, reports BSS.
"The digital evidence will be accepted from now as per the proposed law," said Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam while briefing reporters after the meeting.
He said evidence, documents and such other things were given online after the inception of digital or online trials of cases amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
“There is nothing directly mentioned about online or digital evidence in the existing Evidence Act,” he said.
“With the existing law, many legal complexities might appear if any aggrieved person files a petition with the higher court, challenging the verdict of the lower court in case of acceptance of digital evidence or documents,” he said.
In the draft law, a provision was kept for making a forensic examination of digital evidence. "If the court thinks necessary or any party of the case doubts about the authenticity of such evidence, these can be removed through forensic examination," said the Cabinet Secretary.
He said sufficient laboratories are there in the country for forensic examination of digital evidence.
The government might spread the laboratories and technology to convenient places of the country for the sake of submission of digital evidence, he added.
The submission of false or manipulated evidence would be punished as per the laws concerned.
Anwarul Islam said, "If anyone twists (tampers) evidence, the persons will be dealt with as per section 211 of the Penal Code or section 57 of the Digital Act."
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina presided over the weekly cabinet meeting virtually from Ganabhaban on Monday. Her cabinet colleagues and others joined at the meeting room of the Cabinet Division. Photo: PID