A forensic lab in honour of Dec 16 braveheart soon

Delhi Police are in the process of getting a forensic lab that is exclusively dedicated to dealing with cases of crimes against women.

The new well-equipped forensic lab will be built in the memory of the December 16, 2012 gang rape victim and christened Nirbhaya Forensic Laboratory. Sources said that the police will soon send a proposal for setting up the new forensic lab to the Union home ministry.

In a recent meeting with Delhi’s L-G Anil Baijal, senior Delhi Police officers had mooted the idea of creating a separate lab to deal with cases related to crimes against women. The police demanded pooling of resources by the Centre as well as Delhi government for establishing such a lab.

Police officials also suggested money from ‘Nirbhaya Fund’, allocated by the central government to the Delhi Police, be used for setting up the forensic lab.

During the meeting, police officers said that creation of a new lab will help them bring down pendency of cases of crimes against women and improve conviction rates.

Statistics of Delhi Police show that out of 2,199 rape cases reported in 2015, trial was on in 1,609 cases. Similarly, of the 2,166 and 1,636 rape cases reported in 2014 and 2013, trial is still on in 1,682 and 1,342 of the cases, respectively.

Even i the December 16 gang rape case, it took more than four years for the Supreme Court to confirm the death sentences handed to the four convicts despite the case getting help of various forensic labs across the country for speedy forensic evidence reports.

A senior official, who attended the meeting, told HT that the state-of-the-art forensic laboratory will be developed on the pattern of central forensic science laboratory (CFSL) of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The official added that unlike other forensic labs, the Nirbhaya Forensic lab will be manned and operated by independent professionals hired from various fields.

“Since independent professionals have expertise in their field, we can expect a more professional and speedy output from them,” said the officer.

The objective, officials said, was to provide speedy justice to the victims. “Investigations, chargesheet and conviction of accused in majority of cases get delayed because delay in receiving forensic reports. Delhi government’s forensic lab and CFSL are already overburdened,” he added.

Dependra Pathak, Delhi Police chief spokesperson said, “Delhi Police is committed towards safety of women in the city.”