RELEVANCE OF EVIDENCE IN INDIA’S DIGITAL ERA: INNOVATIONS, LEGAL CHALLENGES, AND SDG ALIGNMENT

AUTHOR – ANJALI YADAV, STUDENT AT LAW COLLEGE DEHRADUN, UTTARANCHAL UNIVERSITY

BEST CITATION – ANJALI YADAV, RELEVANCE OF EVIDENCE IN INDIA’S DIGITAL ERA: INNOVATIONS, LEGAL CHALLENGES, AND SDG ALIGNMENT, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 5 (11) OF 2025, PG. 161-169, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344

Abstract

In an age where bytes often speak louder than witnesses, India’s courts find themselves at the crossroads of tradition and innovation. Digital footprints, from blockchain-etched timestamps to AI-decoded voiceprints, are increasingly the linchpin of legal narratives, yet they carry both the promise of crystalline transparency and the peril of algorithmic obfuscation. This paper embarks on a journey through India’s evolving evidence landscape, tracing the contours of recent statutory overhauls (the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023; Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023) and landmark judgments (from Anvar P.V. to Arjun Panditrao Khotkar) that oscillate between procedural rigor and pragmatic flexibility. We spotlight cutting-edge forensic infrastructure, from blockchain-backed chain‑of‑custody apps in Delhi to National Cyber Forensic Laboratories born of the Nirbhaya initiative, and interrogate how AI-driven analysis both accelerates investigations and raises new questions of bias and “black‑box” opacity. By weaving comparative threads from U.S. Daubert criteria to UK accreditation standards, and aligning our findings with Sustainable Development Goals, especially the quest for just, inclusive institutions (SDG 16) and resilient innovation ecosystems (SDG 9), we propose a roadmap for a “forensically enabled” justice system. Our recommendations blend legislative clarity, judicial tech‑literacy, and cross-border data pacts into a cohesive blueprint: one that ensures digital evidence illuminates truth rather than obscures it, safeguarding both the scale of technological progress and the sanctity of due process.