New Delhi, Oct 29 (PTI) The Delhi High Court has allowed recording of evidence of a US-based prosecution witness through video conferencing in a 2012 case related to the Official Secrets Act that allegedly
involves arms dealer Abhishek Verma and his Romanian wife Anca Maria Neacsu.
The high court said the trial court should record the evidence of C Edmond Allen through video conferencing from the Indian Consulate, New York, in accordance with the Delhi High Court Video Conferencing Rules, 2020, along with several additional safeguards necessitated by the sensitivity of OSA-protected material.
The HC allowed a petition by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against a trial court's order which had dismissed the agency's application seeking permission to examine Allen as a prosecution witness through video-conferencing in connection with the case.
Justice Sanjeev Narula said that while the apprehension of the trial court that the use of video conferencing may occasion leakage of classified material cannot be dismissed as fanciful, yet the answer in law is not prohibition but regulation in a just and equitable manner through adequate safeguards.
The high court said the Official Secrets Act (OSA) does not interdict the conduct of trials and prescribes the manner in which sensitive proceedings are to be held.
"The proper judicial response is therefore to manage risk, while preserving the integrity of the proceeding," it said in an order passed on Tuesday.
The case was registered by the CBI in 2012 under the provisions of the OSA and for the alleged offence of criminal conspiracy under the erstwhile Indian Penal Code, following a complaint from the Union Ministry of Defence.
Allen had sent a letter to the then defence minister containing information and enclosing documents relating to Indian defence matters.
The documents were referred to the Ministry of Defence, which opined that they were classified and had been unauthorisedly communicated, the CBI had said.
An FIR was lodged by the CBI alleging that Abhishek Verma and his associate, in conspiracy with others, had obtained and transmitted classified defence information to unauthorised persons, including Allen.
The CBI contended before the high court that there is no statutory prohibition under OSA against recording evidence through video conferencing, particularly where secrecy is preserved through in-camera proceedings and controlled handling protocols.
It said 79-year-old Allen is suffering from serious cardiac and orthopaedic conditions. He has been advised against long-haul flights and has faced threats allegedly from the respondents.
Video conferencing is the only viable means to secure his evidence without compromising his safety or health, the CBI said.
The plea was opposed by the counsel for the accused who claimed that the agency's petition was misconceived, rests on suppression or misstatement of material facts and merits dismissal in limine.
Allowing the CBI's plea, the high court observed that the relevant rule of the Delhi High Court VC Rules is a fairness provision which ensures that the accused's fair-trial rights are kept in view before resort is taken to video conferencing.
It added that the provision does not confer a substantive veto over the prosecution's ability to lead material evidence.
Justice Narula relaxed the requirement of obtaining the accused's consent for the limited purpose of recording the testimony of Allen.
Directing that the proceedings shall be conducted in camera, the high court said, "The examination shall take place on a court-approved, end-to-end encrypted VC platform, with no recording, download, save, print, copy, or screenshot functions enabled at the Remote Point. No departure from the foregoing safeguards shall be made without prior leave of the trial court, with brief reasons recorded". PTI SKV SKV RT
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