Proof of document not required by law to be attested.

What this section does

An attested document that is not required by law to be attested may be proved as though it were an unattested document. The attestation does not impose any additional evidentiary burden on the party seeking to prove it. The document can be admitted without calling the attesting witnesses.

AI-generated plain-language summary. For the binding statutory text, see India Code (official).

The rule in one line

Voluntary attestation on a document not legally required to be attested does not change the mode of proof — it may be proved as if unattested.

When it applies

• A promissory note is voluntarily attested by two witnesses; since attestation is not legally required for such a note, it may be proved by any admissible means without examining the attesting witnesses.
• A sale agreement (not a registered deed) bears an attesting witness's signature; the party relying on it need not call that witness to prove the document.

Derived from IEA s.72.