Set up more lie detector labs, says court

NEW DELHI - The Delhi High Court has asked the government to set up more lie detector laboratories after it was told a large number of tests were pending as there is only one facility here for conducting such examinations.

The court was hearing a petition filed by the family of a woman who was missing ever since a city court had earlier this year granted her husband a divorce. Her family suspected her former husband and his brother and police wanted to conduct a lie detector test on both. However, the court expressed surprise that the tests had not yet been carried out.

“We are surprised to note that the lie detector tests on the two suspects have still not been carried despite a lapse of one-and-a-half month,” a division bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Ajit Bharihoke said earlier this week.

Delhi Police counsel Meera Bhatia told the court that only a laboratory with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was equipped for conducting lie detector tests and police had also applied there but due to a large number of pending cases, the tests on the two men could not be conducted.

“There is a queue for such a lie detector test to be carried out,” Bhatia said.

“It is obvious to us that the absence of adequate number of laboratories to carry out such lie detector test is impeding investigation. It is stated that one laboratory has been established at Rohini. We direct that necessary action should be taken forthwith in the present matter for the lie detector tests to be carried out on the two suspects at the laboratory at Rohini,” the bench said, adding the state should inform them about further progress in establishing new laboratories for conducting lie detector tests.