The law of evidence allows an opinion of

any person other than the judge as to

the existence of the facts in issue or
facts that are relevant to the matter.
The judge is not expected to be an
expert in all fields especially where the
subject matters involve technical or
specialized knowledge. In these
circumstances he needs the help of an
expert – who has superior knowledge
or experience in relation to the subject
matter. A trail involves the calling of
witness to adduce evidence.
Sec 39 BSA (opinion of an expert is a
relevant fact)
Persons
 Who is an Expert – When the Court has to
form an opinion : specially
On a Foreign law
skilled in any
point Science
of  Art, or
of such fields
Any other are called
field, or experts
As to Handwriting And his
identit Finger opinions are
y of Impressions relevant
Opinion for electronic evidence facts
: When
information is transmitted or stored in a
computer system and the court need
assistance, it refers to an examiner of
 Following expert opinion may be
1.Foreign law - relevant
Foreign law can be proved by :
 The evidence of a person specially skilled in it
 Direct reference to books printed or published
under the authority of the foreign government.
2. Science or Art Expert : Includes subjects
requiring special study or experience for
forming an opinion like –
 Medical opinion : Medical evidence is
corroborative. Doctors, physicians or surgeons
may provide opinions on -
 Physical condition, age, cause of death
 Nature and effect of diseases or injuries,
instruments causing injuries, time of
injury, fatality of injury, future
consequences of injuries.
 In rape cases, medical reports of victim ad
accused are crucial. If the medical officer
opines the act was consensual based on
injuries, it carries significant important.
 Where the opinion of medical witness is
contradicted by another and both experts
are equally competent to form opinion, the
court will accept the opinion of that expert
which supports the direct evidence in the
case.
 If prosecution evidence is inconsistent with
medical evidence and not reasonably
explained, it can discredit the entire case.
e.g. in a poisoning case, a toxicologist might
be called to provide insights into the effects
of a particular poison found in the victim's
body.

 Section 326 of BNSS states that the

deposition of a medical witness, taken and
attested by a magistrate, can be given as
evidence even if the deponent is not called
as a witness.
Art Expert.
An art historian or curator specializing in
the authenticity of paintings or
sculptures .
e.g. If a disputed painting is thought to be a
forgery, an art historian specializing in the
artist’s works could offer expert testimony
on its authenticity based on brush work,
materials, and historical context.
 Expert in “any other field” :
 For e.g. a software engineer or cyber
security expert in a case involving hacking
or intellectual property disputes in the digital
space.
3. Handwriting Expert :
 Handwriting expert opinion is advisory.
Experts compare disputed handwriting with
admitted handwriting and give an opinion on
authorship.
 Handwriting expert opinions require
corroboration and are not conclusive as they
are considered weak evidence.
Methods of proving handwriting :
 By the Author of the document i.e a person
who wrote the document can testify to its
authenticity.
 By an eye witness : A person who saw
someone writing or signing the document can
verify the handwriting.
 By someone acquainted with the handwriting :
A person familiar with the handwriting
through receiving documents purportedly
written by the party, in reply to their
communication, or in the ordinary course of
business, can testify to its authenticity.
 By court’s comparison : The court can form an
opinion by comparing the disupted
handwriting with admitted samples of the
handwriting.
 By a certifying authority for Digital Signatures.

case e.g. in a forgery case, a handwriting

expert would compare the handwriting on a
contested document (such as a will or
contract) to verified samples of the suspect’s
handwriting.
4. Opinion of ballistic expert : A ballistic
expert specializes in the study of projectiles and
firearms. Their expertise is used in cases
involving guns, where they may trace a bullet
cartridge to a specific weapon from which it was
discharged. Forensic ballistics can also provide
opinions about the distance from which a shot
was fired & the time when the weapon was last
used.
 Pritinder Singh @ Lovely vs State of Punjab,
2023
The supreme court emphasized the significance
of ballistic expert testimony in murder cases
involving firearms. The absence of such
testimony would be a significant gap, especially if
the prosecution relies on circumstantial evidence.
5. Fingerprint Expert –
Generally, finger impression expert’s
opinion is given more value because :
 The fingerprints of any person remain the
same from their birth till death, and
 No two individuals are ever found to have
same finger impressions.
6. Evidence of tracking Dog – Trained
dogs are used for crime detection. The
dog’s trainer can testify about the dog’s
behavior. The evidence of the tracker
dog is also relevant u/s 39
[Abdul Razak vs. State of Maharashtra]
7. Govt. Scientific Experts :
 Sec. 329 BNSS provides a list of some
govt. scientific experts as follows :
a) Any Govt. Chemical Examiner or Govt. Assistant
Chemical Examiner
b) The Chief Controller of Explosives.
c) The Director of the Fingerprint Bureau
d) The Director, Haffkine Institute Bombay.
e) The Director, Deputy Director, or Assistant Director
of a Central Forensic Laboratory or a State
Forensic Science Laboratory.
 The Serologist to the Govt.
 Any other scientific expert specified or certified by
notification by the State Government or the
Central Government for this purpose.
 Evidentiary value of expert opinion :
 Verification of expertise: the court must
ensure the person is an expert under the law.
If the person is not an expert, his opinion is
discarded
 The expert must be examined and cross
examined
 Non-substantive Evidence : Expert opinion is
not substantive evidence. it must be
corroborated by clear direct evidence or
circumstantial evidence. It is unsafe to rely on
expert evidence without independent and
reliable corroboration.
 Once the court accepts an expert’s opinion, it
becomes the opinion of the court.
Witness can be described in two categories :
Expert Witness
Qualifications
 An expert witness must be ‘peritus’,
meaning skilled and knowledgeable in the
particular area ….. Lord Russell.
 Hence, an expert is one who has acquired
special knowledge, skills, or experience in
any science, art, trade, or profession
through practice, observation, or careful
study.
 For example medical officer, chemical
analyst, explosive expert, fingerprint expert,
etc. Even a “student” may be treated as an
expert under section 39 of the BSA, 2023.
Pre-requisites of an expert
evidence
 For the sake of consideration of
an expert testimony, there are
two important conditions that are
necessary to be shown :
That the subject is such that expert
testimony is necessary
That the witness in question is really
an expert.
 section 39 (1) – Opinion of Experts
 When the court has to form an opinion upon a
point of Foreign Law, Science, Art, Identity.
Handwriting or finger impressions, the
opinions upon that point of persons
specially skilled in such foreign law ,
science or art, or any other field, or in
questions as to identity of handwriting or finger
impressions are relevant facts.
 The help of experts is necessary when the
question involved is beyond the range of
common experience or common knowledge or
where the special study of a subject or special
training or skill or special experience is called
for.
 Illustration : the question is, whether the
death of A was caused by poison. The opinions
of experts as to the symptoms produced by the
poison by which A is supposed to have died, is
relevant.
Section 39(2)
 When in a proceeding, the court has to form an
opinion on any matter relating to any information
transmitted or stored in any computer resource or
any other electronic or digital form, the opinion of
the examiner of the electronic evidence referred
to in section 79 A of the information Technology
Act, 2000, is relevant fact.

(CHAPTER XIIA of the Information Technology Act,

2000 empowers the Central Government under
section 79A to notify any Department, body or
agency of the Central Government or a State
Government as an Examiner of Electronic Evidence
for the purposes of providing expert opinion on
electronic form evidence before any court ...)
40 BSA: Facts bearing upon
opinions of experts
When the opinion of experts is relevant, any fact
which is otherwise irrelevant will become relevant
if it either
Supports or
Contradicts
the opinion of experts
e.g. A dies under suspicious circumstances dies of
unnatural death. The body is sent for examination.
The medical officer after examination reports that
A died of a poisonous pin which was pricked into
his body. However the eyewitness depose in the
court that the death of A was caused by a snake
bite. Here the statement of the eye witness which
contradicts the opinion of doctor becomes relevant.
Sec. 41 BSA : Opinion as to
handwriting, and signature when
relevant
41(1). Opinion as to handwriting – When
the court has to form an opinion as to the
person whom any document was written or
signed, the opinion of any person
acquainted with the handwriting of the
person by whom it is supposed to be written
or signed that it was or was not written or
signed by that person is a relevant fact.
Explanation : A person is said to be
acquainted with the handwriting of another
person when he has:
 Seen that person write
 Received documents purporting to be
written by that person in response to
documents written by himself or under his
authority and addressed to that person.
 Habitually dealt with documents purporting
to be written by that person in the ordinary
course of business.

41 (2) : Opinion as to electronic

signature when relevant : when the
court has to form an opinion as to the
electronic signature
 Difference between section 39 and 41

Section 39 Setion 41
Opinion of Opinion of non-
handwriting expert is handwriting expert is
relevant relevant
Experts are not Opinion giver must be
acquainted with the acquainted with the
handwriting handwriting
Expert is not present Witness may be
at the time of writing present and see the
person write.
S. 42 BSA : Opinion as to existence of Right or
Custom, when relevant :
 When there is a question of existence of any
general custom and right and on which the
court has to form an opinion, the opinion of
persons who are aware of the existence of
such general custom or right is relevant.
Explanation : The right of the villagers of a
particular village to use the water of a
particular well is a general right within the
meaning of this section.
Sec. 43 BSA : Opinion as to usages,
tenets, etc, when relevant :
When court needs to form an opinion regarding
one of the following :
I.The usages and tenets of any body of men or family
II.The constitution and governance of any religious or
charitable foundation
III.The meaning of words or terms used in particular
districts or by particular classes of people.
The opinion of person who has special means of
knowledge is relevant.
the section is applicable to the opinion given by a
person who is alive and has special means of
knowledge of any word or vocabulary used in any
locality, language, religion, custom etc.
Sec. 44 BSA: Opinion on relationship,
when relevant :
When the court has to form an opinion as
to the relationship of one person to
another;
The opinion, expressed by conduct, of any
person who has special means of knowledge on
the subject is relevant. This person could be a
member of the family or someone else with
special means of knowledge.
Proviso : Such an opinion is not sufficient
To prove a marriage in proceedings under
Divorce Act, 1869
In prosecutions under sections 82 and 84 of the
BSA, 2023
 Illustration a : The question is whether A and B
were married. The fact that A and B were usually
received and treated by their friends as husband and
wife is relevant.
 Illustration b : The question is whether A was the
Legitimate son of B. the fact that A was always treated
as B’s legitimate son by family members is relevant.
• Dalgovind vs. Nimai Charan, 1959 : Conduct must
be proved according to section 55 :
Seen conduct must be proved by someone who saw it.
Heard conduct must be proved by someone who
heard it.

 Dhannulal vs. Ganeshram, 2015 : In marriage

proof cases, the burden is on the person who denies
the marriage.
Sec. 45 BSA : Grounds of opinion,
when relevant :
Whenever the opinion of any living person is
relevant, the grounds on which such opinion is
based are also relevant.
Illustration : An expert may give an account of
experiments performed by him for forming his
opinion
The opinion of an expert and other persons who
are competent to give opinion under sections 41,
42, & 43 is of no value unless the ground on
which opinion is based are disclosed. The opinion
must be supported by facts and reasons.