NEW DELHI (India CSR): With Advocate A M Iktear Uddin (known as Advocate Anik), a Lawyer and Special Public Prosecutor in Bangalore, and a Partner at Prime Legal
1. What is digital evidence? What kinds of digital evidence can be used in divorce court, and why is it important in these cases?
Advocate Anik: Digital evidence is any electronic information that is relevant to marriage disputes. This includes WhatsApp chats, emails, call logs, social media posts, audio and video recordings, location data, and even online purchases. In this digital age, such evidence is often very important to prove claims of cruelty, cheating, financial wrongdoing, or child custody issues. In family law, courts are using digital evidence more and more to find the truth and make sure justice is secured.
2. What has changed in the law about secretly recording conversations between spouses?
Advocate Anik: In many of our cases, it has been hard to get different types of digital evidence accepted. But the recent landmark ruling in Vibhor Garg v. Neha (2025) by the Hon’ble Supreme Court changed the game by making secretly recorded phone calls between spouses admissible evidence in divorce cases. The Court weighed the right to privacy against the right to a fair trial. It said that Section 122 of the Evidence Act protects communications between spouses but not lawsuits between spouses, like divorce. There is still debate about whether these kinds of recordings can be used in court because the other spouse could question what they say and ask for forensic testing. People is mostly worried that the recording shows the other person and their friends having an illegal relationship. I often tell people to ask for a forensic report on the recording and examine it with a best divorce lawyer before anyone make any opinion on it.
3. What legal standards must digital evidence meet in order to be allowed?
Advocate Anik: The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, requires compliance with Indian law. This means that an affidavit must include a certificate that the electronic record was made while the device was working properly and without any tampering. Proper paperwork for the chain of custody. Proof that the evidence is real and useful. If you don’t have these, courts might not accept digital evidence.
4. How should parties keep digital evidence so that it can still be used in court?
Advocate Anik: Keeping things safe is important. Some important steps are not changing or deleting original data on devices, Take screenshots or downloads with timestamps without editing them. Make backups that are safe and stored on different media. Keep a detailed chain of custody log that shows who has access to the evidence.
5. What are the usual steps to take when getting digital evidence?
Advocate Anik: Extraction has to be done in a planned and legal way.
a. Find relevant data (messages, calls, posts) that have to do with the case.
b. Use forensic tools that keep metadata and don’t change the original files.
c. Store the extracted data safely in formats that can’t be changed;
d. Keep a record of the chain of custody from the time it was collected to the time it was submitted to court.
6. What useful tips do you have for spouses or lawyers who are gathering digital evidence?
Advocate Anik: Some important suggestions are to stay away from illegal actions like hacking or getting into something without permission. This kind of proof can be thrown out and lead to legal problems. Keep all messages, call logs, and other important online data without deleting them. Talk to the best divorce lawyer to help you collect evidence in a legal way and follow the rules.
7. How much does digital evidence change the way marital disputes are resolved compared to traditional evidence?
Advocate Anik: Digital evidence has changed marriage law by giving clear, direct information about how people communicate and act, which is much more than what oral testimony or circumstantial evidence can show. It can quickly and clearly prove or disprove claims about cheating, abuse, financial wrongdoing, and being a good parent. Still, it needs to be handled carefully and with legal knowledge to protect rights and make sure it can be used in court. Digital footprints are now a must-have in family courts.
8. What do you think will happen in the future with the use of digital evidence in divorce cases?
Advocate Anik: The future is digital. Courts will use more data from encrypted messaging apps, advanced social media analytics, geolocation and metadata tracking, artificial intelligence tools for forensic analysis, and other sources. Laws and court practices will keep changing to find a balance between privacy concerns and the realities of technology in the justice system. To use digital evidence effectively, lawyers need to keep up with the latest information.
Advocate A M Iktear Uddin, known as Advocate Anik says that spouses and lawyers should focus on legally collecting and keeping digital evidence, like WhatsApp chats, call logs, and recordings, and stay away from illegal methods like hacking that could make evidence unusable. To prove authenticity, early forensic authentication is very important. Keeping up with changing laws like the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023, helps you use digital evidence to make marriage cases stronger and get fair results.
(India CSR)
