Documents lost in fire at NCB office, court allows agency to rely on secondary evidence
A major fire had broken out in the NCB's Ballard Estate office on July 3, 2013. The agency claimed that the Mumbai Fire Brigade had submitted a report stating that a defective electric circuit was the reason for the fire.
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Secondary evidence in the form of photocopies of original documents can be permitted by court in specific circumstances during a trial. (Credit: Pixabay)Stating that original documents of a case pending for over 10 years were destroyed in a fire at its office in 2013, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) recently sought permission to rely on secondary evidence. The special court allowed the plea, stating that the fire cannot be attributed to be due to any fault of the agency.
A major fire had broken out in the NCB’s Ballard Estate office on July 3, 2013. The agency claimed that the Mumbai Fire Brigade had submitted a report stating that a defective electric circuit was the reason for the fire.
It said the fire was limited to the computer and server rooms but the left wing where the records were kept saw some damage due to the water used in the rescue and the smoke caused by the fire. Secondary evidence in the form of photocopies of original documents can be permitted by court in specific circumstances during a trial.
The case related to a complaint filed in 2004, where 14 accused are booked after a seizure of 20,000 ampules of Buprenorphine injections, which fall under the purview of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
While the case is underway, the NCB, through its inspector, moved a plea seeking permission to rely on secondary evidence claiming that the original documents were destroyed due to heavy rain.
The defence lawyers for the accused countered that there had been no heavy rain in the area. The zonal director of the NCB submitted the fire inquiry report pegging the loss of originals to the 2013 fire.
The defence lawyers said this inconsistency did not reveal how the documents were lost and hence the agency should not be permitted to rely on secondary evidence.
“The applicant NCB has filed the report and affidavit of officer and satisfied that the original record is destroyed due to fire. The complainant has demonstrated that the original document is unavailable for the reasons, that is fire. It is not attributed to the fault of the complainant. The documents are relevant and necessary for just and proper adjudication of the case. In such circumstances, the application deserves to be allowed,” the court said, in its order on August 13.
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