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Rakesh Mohindra v. Anita Beri

Civil Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Civil Appeal No. 13361 of 2015)Decided 6 Nov 2015
Civil Appeal No. 13361 of 2015
Justice M.Y. Eqbal · Justice C. Nagappan

Background

Anita Beri sued Rakesh Mohindra, claiming he had no right to a family property in Kasauli, Himachal Pradesh, and that he had been using part of it only with her permission. Mohindra said he had inherited the property through a gift deed and a letter of disclaimer from a family member. He asked the trial court to let him prove the disclaimer letter using a photocopy kept in government records, because the original was not available. The trial court allowed this, but the High Court reversed that order.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that the trial court had properly allowed the secondary evidence. The photocopy came from government custody, a records clerk had produced the register, and the party had made genuine efforts to produce the original. The court held that faded or illegible signatures on the copies were not a sufficient reason to reject them. The High Court's order was set aside and the trial court's ruling was restored. The Court made clear, however, that admitting a copy does not prove it, and its genuineness must still be established during trial, with the trial court giving reasons before relying on it.

Lesson Learnt

If an original document is lost or held by an authority, a certified copy can be used as evidence once the holder shows real efforts to produce the original and the copy's source. Admitting a copy in court is not the same as proving it, so the copy's authenticity must still be established at trial.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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