Proof of foreign public documents must comply with the statutory...

Proof of foreign public documents must comply with the statutory proof regime under Section 78(6) of the Indian Evidence Act: originals or certified copies bearing notarial or diplomatic certification are required, and official transmission alone does not dispense with that mode of proof. Where authenticity is challenged, the accused is entitled to inspect the originals during the cross-examination of the prosecution witness to verify certification; inspection must occur in the presence of the magistrate and cross-examination must proceed immediately thereafter. A trial court may not refuse production solely by labelling the request as a delay tactic; costs imposed on that basis were set aside and production was directed.

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