The ‘burden’ of proof: As chargesheets surge in volume and data, accused seek access to computers
The Indian Express / by Sadaf Modak
From accused in the now-concluded Malegaon 2008 blast case to those booked in the Elgaar Parishad case of 2017-18, several accused have been given permission to use computers, with curbs.
In 2006, some of the accused in the Mumbai serial train blasts case had to approach the court for permission to keep their over 10,000-page chargesheet in their barracks; the overcrowded Arthur Road Jail barrack barely had space for its prisoners.
Twenty years later, the jail still remains crowded, chargesheets have only got longer, and the struggle for space has gone digital. Undertrials across jails are seeking access to computers or laptops to read the electronic evidence against them. From accused in the now-concluded Malegaon 2008 blast case to those booked in the Elgaar Parishad case of 2017-18, several accused have been given permission to use computers, with curbs.
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Also read:
▪ Provide access to computer, court tells jail authorities on plea made by Surendra Gadling and Arun Ferreira (The Indian Express / Jan 2023)
▪ Incriminating evidence planted in computers: The Trojan solved the Bhima Koregaon case! (Anchored Narratives / Jan 2023)
▪ Since Evidence Tampering Not Ruled Out, Accused Want Chargesheets Quashed (The Wire / Oct 2022)
▪ NIA’s draft chargesheet against Elgar Parishad accused smells foul (People’s Review / Aug 2021)
▪ Surendra Gadling’s Computer Was Attacked, Incriminating Documents Planted: Arsenal Consulting (The Wire / July 2021)
▪ Chargesheet in Elgar Parishad case: CPI Maoist documents, letters on ‘anti-fascist front’ cited by NIA (The Indian Express / Oct 2020)
▪ Supplementary chargesheet brings little new information to the case (Scroll.in / Feb 2019)
