Section 209 BNSS: Receipt of Evidence Relating to Offences Committed Outside India
Section 209 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 provides a procedural mechanism for an Indian Court to receive specified depositions and exhibits originating outside India when an offence is being inquired into or tried under Section 208 BNSS.
Section 208 establishes the circumstances in which certain offences committed outside India may be dealt with in India. Section 209 complements that provision by enabling the Central Government, where it thinks fit, to direct that specified foreign depositions and exhibits be received as evidence by the Indian Court conducting the inquiry or trial.
Text of Section 209 BNSS
209. Receipt of evidence relating to offences committed outside India. When any offence alleged to have been committed in a territory outside India is being inquired into or tried under the provisions of section 208, the Central Government may, if it thinks fit, direct that copies of depositions made or exhibits produced, either in physical form or in electronic form, before a judicial officer, in or for that territory or before a diplomatic or consular representative of India in or for that territory shall be received as evidence by the Court holding such inquiry or trial in any case in which such Court might issue a commission for taking evidence as to the matters to which such depositions or exhibits relate.
Meaning and scope of Section 209
Section 209 is concerned with evidence located or generated outside India in a case that is already being inquired into or tried in India under Section 208. It does not itself create jurisdiction over an overseas offence. Its operation depends on the case falling within Section 208.
The provision recognises that witnesses, documents or other evidentiary material relating to an overseas offence may be situated in another country. Instead of requiring every item of evidence to be produced in India in the ordinary manner, Section 209 permits the Central Government to direct that specified copies of depositions or exhibits recorded or produced before the authorities described in the section may be received by the Indian Court as evidence.
Essential requirements under Section 209
| Requirement | The alleged offence must have been committed in a territory outside India. |
|---|---|
| Connection with Section 208 | The offence must be under inquiry or trial under Section 208 BNSS. |
| Authority | The Central Government may issue the direction if it thinks fit. |
| Material covered | Copies of depositions and exhibits produced in physical or electronic form. |
| Where recorded or produced | Before a judicial officer in or for the foreign territory, or before an Indian diplomatic or consular representative in or for that territory. |
| Condition relating to commission | The matter must be one in which the Indian Court could issue a commission for taking evidence concerning the matters to which the depositions or exhibits relate. |
Important expressions used in Section 209
Depositions
In this context, a deposition is the recorded testimony or statement of a witness made before the judicial or diplomatic/consular authority contemplated by the section. The expression should be understood in the procedural setting of evidence taken for use in a judicial proceeding.
Exhibits
Exhibits are documents, records, objects or other materials formally produced as evidentiary material. Section 209 expressly recognises exhibits in both physical form and electronic form.
Diplomatic or consular representative of India
The provision includes depositions made or exhibits produced before an Indian diplomatic or consular representative in or for the foreign territory. This creates a statutory route for specified evidence taken abroad through Indian diplomatic or consular channels to be received by the Court when the requirements of Section 209 are met.
Commission for taking evidence
A commission is a procedural mechanism by which a Court may arrange for evidence to be taken away from the Court itself in circumstances permitted by law. Section 209 links the receipt of foreign depositions and exhibits to cases in which the Court could issue such a commission regarding the matters covered by that evidence.
Role of the Central Government
Section 209 uses the words "may, if it thinks fit". The receipt of the specified foreign material under this section therefore operates through a direction of the Central Government. The provision does not state that every foreign deposition or exhibit automatically becomes evidence merely because it exists or has been recorded abroad.
This should also be read with Section 208, under which an offence committed outside India in the circumstances specified there cannot be inquired into or tried in India without the previous sanction of the Central Government.
Electronic evidence under Section 209
A notable feature of Section 209 is its express reference to exhibits produced "either in physical form or in electronic form". This language accommodates digital records and other electronic material originating outside India, while the use, proof and evidentiary treatment of such material must also be considered in the light of the applicable provisions of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 and other applicable procedural requirements.
Relationship between Sections 208 and 209 BNSS
- Section 208 deals with specified offences committed outside India and the conditions for dealing with such offences in India.
- Section 209 deals with receipt of specified evidence from outside India once the matter is being inquired into or tried under Section 208.
- Section 209 is therefore procedural and supplementary to Section 208.
A Court or practitioner considering Section 209 should first identify the statutory basis for the Indian inquiry or trial under Section 208 and then examine whether the foreign deposition or exhibit falls within the categories and conditions stated in Section 209.
Commencement of the BNSS
The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 is Act No. 46 of 2023. The Central Government brought the BNSS into force from 1 July 2024, subject to the notified exception relating to the specified entry concerning Section 106(2) in the First Schedule. Section 209 is therefore part of the current criminal procedure framework.
Frequently asked questions
What is Section 209 BNSS?
It is the provision governing receipt by an Indian Court of specified copies of depositions and exhibits from outside India when an offence is being inquired into or tried under Section 208 BNSS.
Does Section 209 apply without Section 208?
Section 209 is expressly tied to an offence being inquired into or tried under Section 208. It does not operate as an independent provision for creating jurisdiction over an offence committed abroad.
Can electronic material be covered?
Yes. The statutory text expressly refers to exhibits produced either in physical form or in electronic form.
Is a Central Government direction required?
Yes. Section 209 states that the Central Government may, if it thinks fit, direct that the specified copies of depositions or exhibits shall be received as evidence by the Court.
This page is intended as a statutory reference and general legal information. For a particular proceeding, the facts, applicable notifications, evidentiary requirements and current judicial interpretation should also be examined.