Supreme Court On Lapse In Carrying Out DNA Profiling In Rape Cases

The Supreme Court said there can be no doubt concerning the position that a fair investigation is necessary for a fair trial.

The Supreme Court Friday said lapse or omission to carry out DNA profiling cannot be permitted to decide the fate of trial for the offence of rape, especially when it is combined with murder, as the cause of criminal justice would become the victim in case of acquittal only on account of such a flaw in the investigation.

The top court observed while commuting the death sentence, awarded to a man for raping and murdering an eight-year-old girl, to life imprisonment with the stipulation that he shall not be entitled to premature release or remission before undergoing actual sentence for a period of 30 years.

A three-judge bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar delivered its verdict on an appeal filed by the convict who had challenged the judgement of the Madhya Pradesh High Court which had confirmed the capital punishment awarded to him in the case by a trial court.

The bench, also comprising Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and C T Ravikumar, noted that the advocate appearing for the convict had contended that no DNA test was conducted to connect the appellant to the samples found on the body of the deceased, and thereby, section 53A of the CrPC was violated.