CHAPTER: 1

INTRODUCTION

“Man is by nature a social animal; an individual who is unsocial naturally,

and not accidentally, and is either beneath our notice, or more than human.
Society is something that precedes the individual. Anyone who either cannot
lead the common life or is so self-sufficient as not to need to, and therefore
does not partake of society, is either a beast or a god.”

(ARISTOTLE)

Origin of mankind can be traced since antiquity. Humans by their very nature
are social animals, and since time immemorial they had been living in various kinds
of societies. The term society is derived from the Latin word „Socius‟, which means
companionship or friendship. Companionship means sociability. It indicates that man
always live in the company of other people for his needs that may be living, working,
or enjoying life. So, man is social animal who depends upon others for his basic
needs. Hence, man and society go in hand to hand with each other. In the words of
Morris Ginsberg:1

“A society is a collection of individuals united by certain relations or mode of

behavior which mark them off from others who do not enter into these relations or
who differ from them in behavior”. It may also be defined as the web of social
relationship.

Primitively, the societies were not so organized or complex as the

contemporary ones. Earlier men use to survive on scavenging, collected sea food, nuts
or fruits; and for this they had to wander from here and there. Shortly after, Homo
sapiens and Homo erectus resorted to different techniques for subsistence viz.
foraging or Hunting and Gathering, which were particularly the ancestral modes.
Such individuals formed a society called as hunter-gatherer society. These societies
were mobile, had non-hierarchical and egalitarian social structure, lacked full time
leaders, bureaucrats, or artisans but, possessed socio-economic equality, and at certain
occasions advocated gender equality. These societies were either in the form of bands
or tribes. Bands were the association of 30-50 people that lacked codified laws,

1
C.N. Shankar Rao, Principles of Sociology with an Introduction to Social Thought, 103 (S.
Chand & Co., 2011).

1
coercive institutions, looked up to the elders for advice and guidance, had loose
organization, informal leadership, temporary character, and decisions were
consensual. On the contrary, tribes were formed of association of two or more bands,
were permanent, and were administered by heads/chiefs/elders for decisions2.

Gradually, mode of subsistence shifted to pastors. Post pastoral societies the

agrarian methods were adopted, followed by industrial revolution; and finally the
knowledgeable era. Pastoral societies are believed to be the direct consequence of
hunting and gathering because of its mobile aspect. This is that branch of agriculture,
which is concerned with the raising of livestock. There is no specific social
organization and these are generally organized into tribes where property is the main
reason for lineage. Agriculture and settlement followed pastoral society as need was
felt for settlement, thus conceiving the sedentary civilization, also known as Neolithic
Civilization.3 The main feature was Division of Labour that created opportunities for
many other not doing farming to resort to other amentiferous projects. It is believed
that agriculture was the key implement in rise of civilization. It not only led to
expansion of villages and towns into neighboring areas but also resulted in conflicts
that were inevitable. So, farmers resorted to barter system seeking protection in
exchange of grains. System of rulers with high social status also had put their
appearance at this stage4.

The intervening period between the agrarian society and the industrial one was
of feudalism. The feudal societies had a peculiar characteristic of dominance. The
peasants were bound to cultivate the landlord‟s land and in return they were afforded
military protection, however, in addition the lord‟s never left an opportunity to exploit
the peasants for food, crops, crafts, and other services. This was soon replaced by
another economic system known as capitalism where the productions were privately
owned and there was open competition in the market. The exploration of America by
Europe served as an impetus in this kind of economic system. There was no concept
of minimum wages yet government did help in the enforcement of the private
contracts. The proprietary rights were recognized, formally recorded, and protected.

2
See, C.N. Shankar Rao, Principles of Sociology with an Introduction to Social Thought, 103
(S. Chand & Co., 2011).
3
Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society, (last visited on November 6, 2011).
4
Ibid.
2
Since capitalism could function with full optimism in presence of legal framework, so
there was development of socio-economic institutions5.

This unravels about the gradual shift of the simplest societies to the complex
ones. However, the basic characteristic of any society was same i.e. it consisted of
people. With people as its core element, it has mutual interaction and mutual
awareness. It also had an element of likeness and differences. This lead to co-
operation, Division of Labour, and interdependence; making society dynamic,
possessing social control, and culture. However, for the present work we would
concentrate only on one element of the society i.e. social control. There is no doubt
about the fact that there is co-operation in the society and that is why it progresses.
But at the same time, there are differences of opinion, competitions, conflicts,
tensions, suppressions, revolts, and rebellions. So, the society has its own ways of
controlling the behavior of its members lest it will cause anarchy, and destroy its basic
fabric. The control mechanism can be either formal or informal. The informal means
include the customs, traditions, conventions, folkways, mores, manners, and
etiquettes. On the contrary, formal means include law, legislation, constitution, police,
Court, army etc.6

In all the societies, whether primitive or those that have reached the highest
peak of civilization, law existed in one form or the other. However, there was
difference in the laws either because of the level of its development, or because of the
characteristics of that society. Due to this, law meant differently in different societies,
for e.g. in Hindu system it implied “Dharma”, in Islamic, “Hukum”, in Roman, “Jus”,
in French”, Droit”, in German, “Richt” and so on.7 As the meaning of Law differed in
different societies, the sources of the origin of law were also numerous. In the early
stages of the society, Customs were the most important and the sole source of law.
However, soon it was felt that in-order to respond to the social change, law needs to
be dynamic. So, value of the customs as a source of law diminished gradually; and

5
C.N. Shankar Rao, Principles of Sociology with An Introduction to Social Thought, 105 (S. Chand &
Co., 2011).
6
Ibid.
7
Dr. B.N. Tripathi, An introduction to Jurisprudence, page 113 (Allahabad Law Agency,2005)

3
legislation and judicial precedents substituted them. This was also because; primitive
societies were being gradually replaced by complex ones that had well defined socio-
economic institutions. Then with feudal times, hierarchy of power was established on
the basis of land, reformation, and renaissance that introduced the concept of
sovereignty. The theory of sovereignty was elaborately described by Austin8 who
defined law as a command of sovereign. This all implies that man by its very nature is
not only a social creature but fighting too; hence, to think of a crime less society is a
myth9. So, there can be no society without crime and criminals. Also, the progress of
any society is directly proportional to the well being of the people of which it is
composed10.

Within the framework of society there are various actions those are
recognized, permitted, and protected by a rule of legal justice. Such actions are called
Rights; and obedience of the same is its correlative, the Duty. Violation of Legal
rights is protected by state, and state ensures protection of the members of the society
in surrender of certain rights. Hence, rights and duties, both are the elements of Law,
and for administration of justice, enforcement of both the elements is required. This
arduous task of protecting the law abiding citizens and punishing the law breakers
vests with the state that performs it through the instrumentality of law. It is for this
reason that Salmond11 has defined law from a different angle/perspective. The
conduct, which is prohibited by the existing law at a given time and place are known
as wrongful acts or crimes12 whereas those which are permissible under the law are

8
John Austin is considered as Father of English Jurisprudence who was elected to the chair of
jurisprudence in the year 1826 at London University. From there, he proceeded to German where he
developed interest in Rome law as it apprised him the chaotic legal exposition of law in his country.
So, he applied the methods to his work and made a scientific arrangement of English law. He applied
Analytical methods, so his school is also known as analytical school. He developed a theory that law
is a command by a sovereign, obedience of which is a duty and disobedience carries sanction. See,
9
According to Durkheim, deviance is not a pathological aberration in the character structure of
particular individuals, but rather, it is „an integral part of all healthy societies.‟ Because crime is
found in all healthy societies it must be performing some necessary, positive function or else it would
disappear as society‟s progress and become more complex and civilized. Crime is normal because a
society without crime would be impossible. Behaviors considered unacceptable have increased, as
society progresses not decreases. Also refer to The Normality of Crime: by Durkheim and Erikson
John Hamlin; Department of Sociology and Anthropology; UMD
10
Dr. B.N. Tripathi, An introduction to Jurisprudence, page 113 (Allahabad Law Agency,2005)
11
According to the Australian jurist, Sir John Salmond, Right is an interest respect for which is a duty,
and disregards a wrong. See, Dr. B.N. Tripathi, An introduction to Jurisprudence
12
According to Paul Tappan, Crime is an intentional Act or Omission in violation of criminal law,
committed without justification or any defense, and punished by law as felony or a misdemeanor.
4
treated as lawful. The wrongdoer committing crimes are punished for their act and
conduct by the law of the land. The introduction of concept of state also introduced
the concept of state‟s justice system that was bifurcated into civil and criminal justice
system13.

Body of rules that delineate private rights and remedies, and govern disputes
between individuals in such areas as contracts, property, and Family Law; distinct
from criminal or public law, is called as civil law. Whereas, body of rules and statutes
that defines conduct prohibited by the government because it threatens and harms
public safety and welfare; and that establishes punishment to be imposed for the
commission of such acts, is called as Criminal law. So, in short any act that infringes
personal rights is addressed by the civil system of law; and any act that causes
damage to whole of the society as such is addressed by the Criminal system of law. To
be decisive regarding the guilt of the suspect, aid was taken from the criminal justice
system, an institution of government, directed at upholding social control, mitigating
crime, deterring or sanctioning those who violate laws, through criminal penalties and
rehabilitation methods. It mainly consists of following main parts: the legislature
(those who create law); the investigators (police); the adjudicators (Courts); and the
correctors (jails etc). All these organs operate together to maintain rule of law within
the society. It is imperative to mention here that correctors (jails) don't fail in the
domain of present work.

The legislature set the rules about investigation and trials. Investigating
agencies and the Courts play a key role in establishing whether, the suspect had
committed any crime or not? Investigation is a patient, step by step inquiry,
observation, or examination and also includes the recording of evidence. However,
once the crime is committed the family of the victim or general public, become
impatient due to flow of information through media, hence, they start expecting faster
results. If investigators need an edge, they have to wise, clever, and have to set up
their own technology and team work. Archaic modes of investigation are of no avail.
So, investigating agencies had no option except to turn to Allied sciences, for
establishing the perpetrator of crime. For e.g. Dr. Edmond Locard developed theory of

See, Prof. N.V.Paranjape; Criminology and Penology; page 6 (Central Law Publications 2000)
13
Ibid.
5
associations of trace evidence in the early 20th Century14. The theory is also called as
Locards theory of exchange15, one of the most important theories of forensic
investigation. Dr. Locard got an opportunity to prove his postulation when on his
advice three suspects linked with dealing with counterfeit coins were examined; and
found to carry in their garments the particles of the metal used in those counterfeit
coins. The suspects were then arrested who confessed to their guilt thus, establishing
their association with crime. Association, therefore, is considered as an inference of
contact between the „source‟ of the evidence and the target16.

The scientific evidence, thus, helps the Courts as well as the investigation
agencies to reach at a conclusion how the evidence came in that state when it was
collected. It aids in reconstruction of the crime scene that helped the investigation
agency to gather what might have happened, and establish the contributors of the
physical/biological evidence. However, it may not conclusively establish the guilt of
the perpetrator. For that, the prosecution has to prove the ingredients of the offence
committed; and it is the law that defines various elements of crime17. Science only
helps to make deductions whether those elements are present or not? Translation of
legal inquest into an appropriate scientific question, and advising the judiciary on the
capabilities and limitations of the current techniques18 is the job of a forensic scientist.
It is unto the forensic scientist and finally the Court to use inference and deductions to
interpret the physical facts19. In Courts, the suspects are given full opportunity to
rebut and disprove the evidence collected by investigating agencies and to prove that
they are not guilty. It has to be kept in mind that in the adversarial system of litigation,

14
Krishna Vij & Rajesh Wisvas, Basics of DNA & Evidentiary values, 16 (Jaypee Publishers,
2004).
15
Ibid., ; This principle is attributed to Edmund Locard, Head of the institute of criminalistics,
University of Lyon, France, who, in the early 20 th century, coined in his „Manual of Police
Techniques”, “theory of interchange” in the science of crime. He proposed that when two objects
come in contact, traces from one would be transferred to the other, and in both directions.
16
Ibid.
17
Crime has two elements: Actus Reus (intentional act or omission) and Mens Rea (guilty mind). If
anyone is lacking, the act cannot be put in the category of crime. See, Prof. N.V.Paranjape;
Criminology and Penology; page 6 (Central Law Publications 2000)
18
Norah Rudin and Keith Inman, An introduction to forensic DNA analysis, 4 (CRC Press, 2 nd
edition).
19
As per Section 3 of IEA, 1872, Evidence is of two types, oral or documentary. Documentary can be
either direct/primary or secondary. In criminal cases, the evidence can be circumstantial too. So,
when the investigation agencies resort to Allied sciences, the opinions given by the analysts/experts
is called as a Expert evidence, evidence under Section 45 of Evidence Act , an exception to Hearsay
and hence admissible, but is a weak kind of evidence.
6
 as of ours, accused is presumed to be innocent till proved guilty. The onus of proving
the accused guilty solely rests upon the prosecution except for the situations covered
under general exceptions20. The guilt can only be established if the Courts reach at the
conclusion that the agency had been able to prove the guilt of the accused beyond the
shadow of reasonable doubt.

1.1 OBJECTIVES OF RESEARCH

The main aim of present research is to evaluate whether social order can be
enforced or preserved using Applied21 sciences or not? If yes, whether it has any
impact upon the criminal justice system? Be it, the investigation, inquiry or the trial.
Main focus would be on branch of science namely molecular biology, genetics, and
biochemistry for forensic uses. Consequentially, it is proposed to study whether the
present justice system is adequately and effectively equipped to deal with genetic
revolution, and issues legal, moral and ethical arising out of it. Hence, the main areas
of consideration would include:

1. To study the evolution of DNA from a nucleic acid to genetic material and then to
infallible technique for identification;
2. To study various techniques involved in DNA profiling and their practical
working in different forensic labs of the State of Haryana and Union territories of
Chandigarh
3. To evaluate how far DNA profiling technique has an ability to aid forensic
investigations.
4. To understand the decisive value of DNA in the outcome of trials.
5. To study the impact of DNA technology upon the legal, social, ethical and moral
rights of the citizens.
6. Lastly, to evaluate the fact whether the legal framework is sufficient for optimum
utility of DNA.

20
As per section 105 IEA, 1872; if the accused takes a defense under any of the general exceptions
falling within Section 73-106 Indian Penal Code, then the burden of proving that defense lies upon
the accused contrary to the general rule of criminal jurisprudence.
21
Science is concerned with knowledge. It can be broadly classified into two categories namely
Physical sciences and Social sciences. Physical science is the science that deals mostly with the
natural inanimate objects, those are more precise, exact and less dubious. However, social science
deals with any kind of study which is concerned with man and society. It is less exact as compared to
Physical science. There is yet another upcoming branch of science called as Applied Science which
aims at applying known scientific principles to a practical problem, and the outcome in many cases is
the new technologies.
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 1.2RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Considering the close interrelation the research issue has with various
disciplines like medicine, Genetics, biotechnology, cytology, social sciences, medical
jurisprudence, and criminology; the methodology adopted for the present research
would be a combination of doctrinal and non-doctrinal analysis. In case of doctrinal
analysis emphasis will be on black-letter and the researcher proposes to collect the
required material from a variety of sources including Medical Jurisprudence,
International Conventions, Municipal Legislations, Journal, Pronouncement of courts
in India and abroad and Research papers on Genetic fingerprinting and uses in
criminal investigation. Doctrinal analysis will be used mainly to study the legal aspect
and current legal framework of scientific investigation (DNA fingerprinting).
However, given the scientific and social nature of the problem, extensive field
surveys, observations interviews and questionnaires will be part of methodology.
Emphasis of survey and observation will be on Research organizations, State Forensic
Labs, Police and Courts. Through interviews and case studies, the community views
and other prospective will be elucidated. Ethical and legal issues such as consent and
privacy will be analyzed and evaluated in the context of these non-empirical studies.

Conclusiveness of DNA evidence in deciding the guilt of the accused, ethical

and legal issues such as consent and privacy will also be analyzed and evaluated in
the context of these non-empirical studies. It would also be seen whether the
investigating officers of our country understand the sensitivity of the physical
evidence. Further, the emphasis would also be laid on the fact that whether the judges
and lawyers of the trial courts have accepted the credibility attached to evidence open
heartedly and whether they are open to legislative amendments in this behalf or they
vouch for having a separate legislation all together.

1.3 PROBLEM PROFILE:

DNA evidence, an expert evidence, an opinion has no binding effect on the

court of Law. However, as in other investigations, if the suspect is found to be
innocent during investigation, he is to be discharged by police. DNA evidence has an
ability to confirm the presence or absence of the person from the alleged crime scene.
8
 Identification being the core object of any investigation, if link is not established, the
person needs to be discharged. However, if link is established, then whether it would
mean that he should be held guilty before trial. This would certainly be
unconstitutional and against the adversarial system of criminal justice system. So, it
needs to be assessed what impact DNA profiling can have on the investigation and on
the outcome of trials. It is also proposed to study the effect of DNA profiling on the
civil liberties of the person including ethical, privacy, moral and legal issues
especially in cases where profiles are stored for comparison purposes or likely to be
stored.

‘WOULD DNA PROFILE IN FORENSIC INVESTIGATION ADJUDGE THE

DELICTUM OU PROBITÉ OF THE SUSPECT?

1.4 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

''DNA PROFILE AS AN IDENTIFICATION TOOL AIDS OR OBSTRUCTS THE

FORENSIC INVESTIGATIONS THUS EFFECTING THE OUTCOME OF
TRIALS”'

In order to assess the hypothesis, the present research involves evaluation of

the theoretical literature and the empirical survey through questionnaires and
interviewing different sets of people in the State of Haryana and Union territories of
Chandigarh. As far as theoretical set up is concerned, the present work has been
bifurcated into various chapters with a sole object of systematic study. The chapter
review of the thesis is as follows:

1.5 CHAPTER OVERVIEW OF THE THESIS

Chapter 1 is an introductory chapter. It introduces the concept of society, its

stages of development and inter-relation of society and crime. It examines in detail,
the importance of social order, and means of enforcement especially the investigation
wing in collaboration with scientific methods. Then it introduces the aim and object of
the present research, the methodology used and the literature analyzed in order to
reach at the conclusion.

9
 Chapter 2 deals with the historical perspective of forensic science in general
and DNA in specific being the limb of forensic science. It also examines in detail the
journey travelled by DNA from genetic material to a unique tool for forensic
investigations through a technique called as DNA profiling.

Chapter 3 deals with the molecular and chemical structure of DNA for
understanding its genetic character, the factors those contribute in transmission of
characteristics from parent to offspring and uniqueness because of which DNA could
be used as an infallible technique of identification for linking an accused to a crime.
Its importance over other biometric modes identification would be discussed. The
body fluids and all cells and parts of body those have an ability to contribute the DNA
evidence would be touched and also the relevance of DNA profiling in admixture
samples, the rape samples where all other markers fail would be dealt in detail.

Chapter 4 deals with the importance of crime scene and law of association.
Every possible source of physical evidence/ biological evidence would be discussed.
The relevance of expertise in collection, lifting, transportation and preservation of
DNA sample would be dealt, DNA evidence being very sensitive. It would also be
emphasized that evidence if not collected properly, would render no results. Also,
necessary safeguards that the collecting officer must exercise would be of core focus.
Hence, the chapter details the lessons for the investing officer qua Collection, lifting,
transportation and preservation of DNA evidence. It also enlightens the investigating
officer about the relevance of chain of custody of the evidence in a criminal trial.

Chapter 5 deals with the profiling of DNA evidence. DNA evidence as such
renders no results. It has to be processed in the forensic lab to deduce a profile in a
readable format so that the results in the understandable language can be tendered in
the court. The process through which a profile is deduced is called profiling. Till date
many techniques have come to the fore for the said purpose. All have been discussed
in detail to show their relevance at the relevant time and inter-se. In this context, terms
probability and statistics have also been touched upon. Particularly because, DNA
profiling report is prepared by applying probability theorems especially, the Bayes
theorem, though it has no relevance/application in India because of lack of DNA data-
banks and DNA databases.

10
 Chapter 6 deals with the impact of DNA profiling on the fundamental rights of
the person. Collection of physical sample from the crime scene may be facile in the
sense that there is no obstruction once the officer knows what to collect and from
where to collect. However, collection of specimen samples and the samples from the
suspect for comparison purposes may invite reluctance on the grounds of
infringement of fundamental rights as guaranteed by Article 20 & Article 21 of the
constitution. Hence, the entire law and precedents on this aspect would be discussed
to evaluate whether any legal provision impedes, obstructs or prohibits the collection
of sample from the suspect on the grounds of being violative of Article 20 & Article
21 of the constitution. It would also evaluate the consequences upon refusal to let
draw the bodily sample for DNA analysis post orders of the court. Last but not the
least, suggestions for amendment in the existing legal framework would also be
discussed.

Chapter 7 talks about the admissibility of DNA evidence in the court room.
Ours is an adversarial system of criminal justice system. The accused is presumed to
be innocent till proved guilty. Onus is heavy upon the prosecution to prove the guilt of
the accused to the hilt though not with mathematical precision. For this, the
prosecution must produce all the evidence that is relevant and admissible. What is
relevant is detailed under sections 6-55 of The Indian Evidence Act, 1872. So, any
evidence that ought to be tendered in the court must pass the admissibility standards.
All relevant evidence is admissible. Evidence act details the best evidence rule.
Hearsay evidence has no foot to stand though with certain exceptions of which, the
expert evidence forms the part. So this chapter discusses in detail the concept of
expert evidence, how it is to be tendered in the court and the standards set for the
expert evidence on the basis of precedents. It is not that every expert opinion would
carry the same weight. The science upon which the opinion is given, its sustainability
in the scientific communities, how reliable and credible it is are some of the factors
those need to be considered before the value can be attached to any expert opinion.
So, it would be thoroughly evaluated how far DNA profiling has made a mark in the
scientific community so as to declare it as an evidence of credence.

Chapter 8 deals with the application of DNA profiling in paternity matters.

DNA profiling in forensic investigation has varied applications, the most important
being the parental testing (paternity and maternity). Parental testing has ancillary

11
usage when it comes to maintenance proceedings, child swapping, determination of
biological parents, inheritance issues, identification of the persons of mass disasters
etc. Hence, the present chapter deals specifically with parental testing through DNA
profiling, its methods, success so far and implications on the lives of the people.

Chapter 9 deals with remaining applications of DNA profiling with special

reference to DNA profiling bill, 2012, which is waiting nod from both the houses of
parliament. The shortcomings of the said bill would also be one of the highlight of
this chapter.

Chapter 10 deals with the utility of DNA databases and data banks. DNA
profiling can have varied applications but it would render half hearted results unless
good number of samples are stored for comparison purposes as mass screening to find
the suspect in each and every case would not only incur huge expenditure but also
would raise ethical and legal issues. Also, retention of DNA samples for a
considerable long time with or without consent is also a very sensitive issue
concerning the privacy of an individual. Hence, this chapter introduces terms like
data-banks and databases. It also highlights the pros and cons of DNA data-banking.
For this, comparative analysis of the countries having DNA data banks and DNA
databases would be discussed in detail.

Chapter 11 deals with the impact of retention of samples and profiles in

databases and data-banks on the civil liberties of the person. As already referred in
chapter 4, DNA profiling is a process to read the base sequences of DNA molecule
(non-coding part which doesn't play any prominent role in the synthesis of protein
molecules for carrying the functions of the human body). Post DNA profiling, a
profile is drawn in the readable format. The probability of any other person having
same profile is worked before suggesting whether it is a match or no match. For this,
there is a requirement of DNA data-bank, the obvious consequence of which is the
retention of profiles/samples either of the volunteers, offenders, convicts, suspects or
crime scene samples. Now if this retention is consented, it may not raise any issue.
However, if they are not consented or the person who is to withdraw the consent is not
available, then certainly it can be problematic. Also, there is no guarantee that the
privacy and confidentiality would not be compromised. This gives rise to ethical,
legal and social issues which would be identified, discussed under this chapter. Also,
12
 it would be seen whether the issues (ethical, social, legal) arising out of retention of
profiles/samples and non-destruction thereof have the ability to devalue the
importance attached to DNA profiling in forensic investigations.

Chapter 12 illustrates international cases on DNA profiling to have insight of

advantages and weakness of DNA profiling.

Chapter 13 deals with data interpretation and statistical review to study the
role, which DNA profiling plays during investigations and trials. For this, it would be
imperative to perform study on the groups of police officers who investigate the
crimes, the forensic experts who are instrumental in drawing the profiles and
rendering results to be produced in courts, the public prosecutors who would examine
the witnesses in the order that chain of custody is not disturbed and assist the court at
the time of final arguments or at the time of deciding an application for examination
the forensic expert, the defense lawyers who would always try to defeat the reliable
evidence or may establish the plea of alibi, the law students who are tomorrow's
budding officers; the accused who are directly involved in the process and finally the
judicial officers who have to play a prominent role in pronouncing the judgments
based on expert evidence and the general public. All these groups would be given
questionnaires and finally a conclusion would be drawn through data analysis using
SPSS software for social sciences.

Chapter 14 would finally conclude the research work and would contain
proposals for reforms, if any to improve and enhance the following:

 Existing legal framework encircling expert evidence particularly DNA

profiling
 Existing expertise of handling physical evidence by the investigating officers
and their knowledge on the subject,
 Existing system to maintain the confidentiality standards by the forensic
experts and modes to remove corruption,
 Existing knowledge of the public prosecutors, the defense counsels and advocates in
general.
 Last but not the least, the existing knowledge of the judicial officers about expert
evidence especially the DNA evidence and their understanding of the subject for its
interpretation and application.

13
1.6 ANALYSIS OF LITERATURE

The information and literature available has been carefully perused and
evaluated. The literature and information resources were the books on medical
jurisprudence, forensic science, criminal investigation, DNA profiling, legislative
provisions both of India and abroad, the judicial pronouncements, international
conventions, articles on science, law, and genetics, forensic laboratory visits and
Internet.

1.7 LIMITATIONS OF STUDY

Utility of DNA profiling in forensic investigations is a global subject with

optimum use in Western countries. The technique has attained maximum graph of
advancement in these countries because of financial capacity, proper documented
legislation, awareness and nature of the investigating agencies to use scientific
methods of investigation. In India, the technique is only available in some forensic
laboratories. This is mainly because the numbers of DNA experts are less, DNA
profiling is costly and non-availability of DNA profiling kits. The labs where DNA
profiling is being done include forensic lab at Chandigarh, Haryana, Delhi and
Hyderabad. However, our object of study includes the application of the technique in
forensic investigations so; we have to confine our study to specific region to get
optimum results of the research work. Hence, the main focus would be in the areas of
State of Haryana and Union territories of Chandigarh.

1.8 IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH WORK

The study should be a rewarding exercise in bringing out the loopholes in the
existing legal regime pertaining to the research topic. The utility of this research is
vital from the point of view of evolving more practical provisions and principles in
the present justice system. The project will contribute significantly to my goal as a
scholar and professional as it will lend critical help to the society in the management
and functioning of criminal justice system. The framework of the research project is
designed and addressed to solve the legal problems of the DNA fingerprinting in
investigation system. It shall be beneficial to the policy makers, policy executors and
researcher in this field.

14