Rule 20, the Board as a digital office
In short
The Board shall function as a digital office. Without prejudice to its power to summon and enforce the attendance of any person and examine her on oath, it may adopt techno legal measures to conduct proceedings in a manner that does not require the physical presence of any individual.
01What the rule preserves
The digital office provision is expressed without prejudice to the Board's power to summon and enforce attendance and to examine on oath. Proceeding digitally is the default mode of working, not a limitation on the Board's coercive powers.
Rule 2 defines techno legal measures by reference to rules 20 and 22, so the same expression carries across to the Appellate Tribunal, which is likewise to function as a digital office under Rule 22(3)(b).
02The practical consequence
A digital office proceeds on the documentary record. What a Data Fiduciary filed, when it filed it, and what the filing said carries proportionately more weight where there is no physical hearing to supplement it.
That places the weight on the Rule 7 intimations and on the contemporaneous record behind them, rather than on an account of the incident constructed afterwards.
03Common questions
Does the Board hold physical hearings?
Rule 20 provides that it functions as a digital office and may adopt techno legal measures so that proceedings do not require physical presence, without prejudice to its power to summon and enforce attendance and examine on oath.
Does the same apply to appeals?
Rule 22(3)(b) provides that the Appellate Tribunal shall likewise function as a digital office.
Ask an AI assistant about this page
Each button opens the assistant with the prompt below already written.
Answers are generated by third party systems and are not published or verified by this site. Check anything load bearing against the gazette text.