In Brief
Common Cause sought a court-ordered investigation into alleged payments to political leaders based on documents recovered during CBI and Income Tax raids on Aditya Birla and Sahara Groups. The documents included loose sheets, computer printouts, and hard drives claiming cash receipts and payments of over Rs 115 crores and Rs 135 crores respectively. The Supreme Court dismissed the petitioner's plea, holding that such loose papers and electronic documents cannot be treated as admissible evidence under Section 34 of the Indian Evidence Act, as they do not constitute regularly kept books of account. The Court ruled that investigation cannot be directed on the basis of legally inadmissible and irrelevant materials, even against ordinary citizens, much less constitutional functionaries, absent cogent, reliable, and corroborating evidence demonstrating actual involvement in alleged misconduct.
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