#evidence in civil suits

The Karnataka High Court ruled that a xerox copy of an agreement of sale can be admitted as secondary evidence under Section 65 of the Indian Evidence Act when the original is lost due to court staff negligence, provided there is no evidence of tampering. This sets a critical precedent for property litigants facing evidentiary loss through systemic administrative failure, reinforcing that procedural lapses by courts do not automatically bar reliance on authenticated duplicates.

Bombay High Court rules that documents expressly referred to in the plaint may be produced later under Order XI Rule 1(5) CPC, provided no prejudice is caused to the defendant. The decision underscores procedural fairness by allowing plaintiffs to submit evidence post-filing if already mentioned in the pleadings, balancing efficiency with due process.

The Chhattisgarh High Court denied specific performance of an oral land sale agreement, ruling that vague testimony, uncorroborated payment claims, and absence of written terms fatally undermine the certainty required under Section 10 of the Indian Contract Act. This reinforces that oral contracts in high-value property transactions demand concrete, contemporaneous evidence - not just witness accounts - to be enforceable, impacting buyers, developers, and litigants relying on informal deals.