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06/04/2026

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The Orissa High Court has issued a significant clarification on the evidentiary framework governing Section 138 proceedings under the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, firmly holding that an accused person cannot lead evidence-in-chief by way of affidavit during trial, drawing a clear and consequential line between the procedural rights of the complainant and those of the accused.

The dispute arose from a commercial transaction where a cheque allegedly issued as security was presented for encashment without the accused's consent. During trial, the accused sought to file defence evidence by affidavit citing age-related constraints. The complainant objected, the trial court rejected the affidavit evidence, and the matter travelled to the High Court.

The High Court upheld the rejection with firmness. Examining Section 145(1) of the NI Act, the Court noted that the provision explicitly uses the word "complainant" alone, and delivered its sharpest observation: "The Court cannot supply words to a statute which the legislature has deliberately omitted."

Relying on the Supreme Court's binding precedent in Mandvi Cooperative Bank Ltd. v. Nimesh B. Thakore, the Court categorically rejected the accused's reliance on Indian Bank Association v. Union of India, clarifying that ruling addressed only procedural streamlining and not substantive evidentiary rights. Personal hardship was also held insufficient to override clear legislative intent.

The ruling reaffirms a foundational principle, where the legislature has spoken clearly, courts must apply the law as written, not as litigants wish it to read.

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