The Delhi High Court on Wednesday directed the city government to consider formulating specific guidelines to prevent unnecessary referrals of postmortem samples to state-run forensic science laboratories (FSLs), noting that such indiscriminate practices were overburdening labs and delaying justice.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Anish Dayal issued the direction while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Dr. Subhash Vijayan, a resident doctor pursuing an MD in forensic medicine at Maulana Azad Medical College.
The court noted that routine and excessive referrals—often medically and legally unwarranted—were clogging the FSL system, leading to significant delays in examining critical evidence in criminal investigations. “Due to excessive and often unnecessary referrals, FSLs are flooded with cases that could have been avoided. This leads to delays in examination of crucial samples and affects the overall pace of the criminal justice system,” the bench remarked.
The court granted the Delhi government three months to assess the issue and consider appropriate policy measures.
Dr. Vijayan’s plea highlighted the “indiscriminate” submission of biological materials—such as viscera, blood, and tissues—for forensic analysis, even in straightforward cases where there is no suspicion of foul play. He attributed this trend to a pervasive fear among doctors of future legal scrutiny. “Most doctors are too afraid of the courts and our legal system. To avoid any potential legal consequences, they choose to send samples in almost every case even when unnecessary. This misguided caution is choking the system,” the petition stated.
The petition also pointed out that in several cases, doctors proceeded to send samples to FSLs despite police officers indicating that forensic analysis was not required for the investigation.
Such practices, the petition contended, consume precious state resources, delay final postmortem reports, and impose psychological burdens on the families of the deceased. It further cited outdated autopsy techniques, manual toxicology methods, and procedural delays by the police in submitting samples to labs as compounding factors.
The High Court’s directive is expected to pave the way for the establishment of clear medical and legal thresholds for forensic referrals, aimed at streamlining procedures and ensuring timely investigations.
