Indian Evidence Act, 1872
Section 71 Proof when attesting witness denies the execution
If the attesting witness denies or does not recollect the execution of the document, its execution may be proved by other evidence.
Evidence Act · Chapter V · Of documentary evidence
Evidence Act section 71 in the BSA
Evidence Act 71BSA 70
Evidence Act section 71, “Proof when attesting witness denies the execution”, is now BSA section 70 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, in force from 1 July 2024.
What changed
From Evidence Act 71 to BSA 70
The words are the same as in the Evidence Act, apart from “Adhiniyam” for the Act’s own name and the new numbers of the sections it refers to.
The official text
Old and new, side by side
Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023
Section 70 Proof when attesting witness denies execution
If the attesting witness denies or does not recollect the execution of the document, its execution may be proved by other evidence.
The texts are India Code’s. The amendment markers and footnotes of the official print are left out, so the old section reads as it stood when it was repealed. The PDFs linked below carry the full history.
Old law or new?
Which one applies to a case
The BSA repealed the Indian Evidence Act from 1 July 2024 (section 170(1)). Any application, trial, inquiry, investigation, proceeding or appeal pending immediately before that date is dealt with under the Evidence Act as it then stood, as if the BSA had not come into force (section 170(2)).
Sources
- The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (Act 1 of 1872), India Code (archived copy)
- The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (Act 47 of 2023), as on 6 October 2025, India Code (archived copy)
- Correspondence Table and Comparison Summary of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA) and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (IEA), Bureau of Police Research and Development (Ministry of Home Affairs): where each section went
