Central Government to notify Examiner of Electronic Evidence
Section 79A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 deals with central Government to notify Examiner of Electronic Evidence. The Central Government may, for the purposes of providing expert opinion on electronic form evidence before any court or other authority specify, by notification in the Official Gazette, any Department, body or agency of the Central Government or a State Government as an Examiner of Electronic Evide The Act came into force on 17 Oct 2000.
[79A. Central Government to notify Examiner of Electronic Evidence.--The Central Government may, for the purposes of providing expert opinion on electronic form evidence before any court or other authority specify, by notification in the Official Gazette, any Department, body or agency of the Central Government or a State Government as an Examiner of Electronic Evidence.
Explanation.For the purposes of this section, "electronic form evidence" means any information of probative value that is either stored or transmitted in electronic form and includes computer evidence, digital audio, digital video, cell phones, digital fax machines.]
Section 79A, The Information Technology Act, 2000 (Act 21 of 2000).
Related judgements & precedents
These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.
-
Nino Mathew v. State of Kerala & Anr.
Court's Decision & Legal Precedent
Section 79A empowers the Central Government to notify an Examiner of Electronic Evidence for expert opinion on electronic form of evidence. Absence of a Gazette notification appointing such Examiner does not render a Cyber Forensic Division / FSL expert opinion on electronic evidence inadmissible. Such opinion remains receivable as expert evidence under Evidence Act s.45 and as a report of a Government scientific expert under CrPC s.293. Non-notification under s.79A is not a ground to exclude or discard the forensic report in a criminal trial.
On this section: NEW teaching fill on empty IT Act s.79A: non-notification of Examiner of Electronic Evidence does not bar FSL cyber-expert admissibility under Evidence Act s.45 / CrPC s.293.
The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.
Made under this section, and citing it
8 instruments state that it was made under this provision — the power to make it comes from here, so a change to any of them changes what this section requires in practice. Newest first.
- Cyber Forensic Division, State Forensics Science Laboratory, Vellayambalam, Thiruvananthapuram Kerala, as Examiner of Electronic Evidence within India,Notification 2021
- Cyber Forensic Laboratory, Air Force Cyber Group,New Delhi, as Examiner of Electronic Evidence within India,Notification 2021
- Cyber Forensic Laboratory, under Army Cyber Group, Directorate General of Military OperationsNotification 2018
- Notifies Central Forensic Science Laboratory, Hyderabad under Directorate of Forensic Science Services, MHA as Examiner of Electronic Evidence within IndiaNotification 2018
- Notifies Computer Forensic and Data Mining Laboratory under Serious Fraud Investigation Office, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, New Delhi as Examiner of Electronic Evidence within India with the scope of Computer (Media) Forensics excluding Floppy Disk Drive.Notification 2018
- Notifies Directorate of Forensic Science, Gandhi Nagar (Gujarat), in the State of Gujarat as Examiner of Electronic Evidence within IndiaNotification 2018
- Notifies Forensic Science Laboratory, Sector 14, Rohini, New Delhi under Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi, as Examiner of Electronic Evidence within IndiaNotification 2018
- State Forensic Science Laboratory, Madiwala, Bangaluru, under Directorate of Forensic Sciences, Karnataka, Police Department, as Examiner of Electronic Evidence within IndiaNotification 2018
Questions about Section 79A
What have the courts held on Section 79A of the Information Technology Act?
Nino Mathew v. State of Kerala & Anr. (24 May 2024) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: NEW teaching fill on empty IT Act s.79A: non-notification of Examiner of Electronic Evidence does not bar FSL cyber-expert admissibility under Evidence Act s.45 / CrPC s.293.
How do I find court cases under Section 79A of the Information Technology Act?
In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: IT Act 79A, section 79A IT Act, section 79A of the Information Technology Act. People searching for it also type it act 2000 section 79a. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with Nino Mathew v. State of Kerala & Anr. (24 May 2024).
What should I read with Section 79A of the Information Technology Act, and has it changed?
The rules and notifications made under it are where it actually bites, and there are 8: most recently Cyber Forensic Division, State Forensics Science Laboratory, Vellayambalam, Thiruvananthapuram Kerala, as Examiner of Electronic Evidence within India, (2021), then Cyber Forensic Laboratory, Air Force Cyber Group,New Delhi, as Examiner of Electronic Evidence within India, (2021), and 6 more.
When did Section 79A of the Information Technology Act come into force?
Section 79A of the Information Technology Act, cited as IT Act 79A, came into force on 17 Oct 2000, having been enacted on 09 Jun 2000. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.
Other sections of this Act
- 2. Definitions1304 words
- 87. Power of Central Government to make rules877 words
- 43. Penalty and compensation for damage to computer, computer system, etc506 words
- 46. Power to adjudicate370 words
- 89. Power of Controller to make regulations345 words
- 70B. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team to serve as national agency for incident response326 words
Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Text as in force on 14 Oct 2026. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.