Parliament Passes Bankers’ Book Evidence Bill 2026

The Parliament has passed the Bankers’ Book Evidence Bill 2026 and paved the way for the introduction of a legal recognition of electronic and digital banking records in court cases. While the Rajya Sabha had approved the bill through voice vote on August 10, it had been passed by the Lok Sabha a week earlier. The Bankers’ Book Evidence Bill 2026 replaces the Bankers’ Book Evidence Act of 1891 which was passed during the colonial era and was meant for a time where banking records were kept in paper form.

What Is the Bankers Book Evidence Bill 2026?

The Bankers’ Book Evidence Bill 2026 replaces the nearly 135-year-old Bankers’ Book Evidence Act of 1891.

It creates a technology neutral legal framework for bankers’ books and recognizes records kept in electronic and digital format.

The Finance Minister of India Nirmala Sitharaman responded to the debate in Rajya Sabha by stating that there was a need for a change in law due to technological advancement in the field of banking since the time of its enactment.

The banks of the modern world keep large volumes of data digitally including their transactions and other information related to finance.

Legal Recognition of Digital Bank Records

Another important change made by the Bill pertains to the acceptance of the digital and electronic bank records as legal evidence.

Records included in the scope of this definition include those that are,

• In written or physical form
• In electronic form
• In digital form
• Stored at the premises
• Stored at an off-premises location
• Stored in cloud-based system
• Stored in backups
• Stored in disaster recovery systems

The broadened scope of this definition aims to ensure that the law is still valid with more and more banks relying on the cloud technology and digital records management.

How Are Digital Records to Be Certified?

In addition, the Bill attempts to define the standardized procedures to certify the use of bank records as legal evidence.

According to the Minister of Finance, such certification is possible using the signatures that can be manual, digital or electronic in nature.

This measure appears quite relevant as the banking transactions become increasingly conducted in a digital environment, hence resulting in the creation of electronic rather than written records.

Why Did It Become Necessary to Abolish the 1891 Law?

The previous Bankers’ Book Evidence Act, 1891 was enacted in an era when banks used paper records extensively.

As a result of the increased digitalisation of banks, it became necessary to change the law.

Under the previous law, problems might emerge about how electronically stored data must be presented before the court.

With the help of the new law, it will be possible to solve this problem by changing the rules to take account of modern conditions.

Protection for Bank Officials

In addition to that, the Bill envisages some measures for protecting bank officials from unnecessary summonses into court.

Minister of Finance Sita Raman noticed that it had already happened in cases when the courts were summoning executives of banks to present paper records when the bank was not even a party to the dispute.

This framework contains some special provisions related to these matters, offering statutory protection of bank officials when the bank is not involved in the process.

Nevertheless, some provisions allow courts to order banks to appear in court.