Rajkot: At least 80 people booked for alleged liquor consumption were acquitted by a Dhoraji court in the month of July alone after police failed to submit Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) reports confirming that their blood-alcohol levels exceeded the legally prescribed limit.The majority of cases were disposed of on the day of filing the chargesheet or within days of filing.Principal senior civil judge V K Bansal disposed of at least 80 such cases during the month, including over 40 cases on a single day, with similar observations about the absence of crucial forensic evidence.The court noted that to establish the alleged offence, the prosecution was required to produce legally admissible evidence showing that the concentration of alcohol in an accused person’s blood was above 0.05%.However, no FSL report substantiating the charges had been placed on record in these cases with the chargesheet. In the absence of the reports, the court said it could not presume that the accused had consumed alcohol beyond the statutory limit.Sources said the investigating police officers were responsible for following up with the forensic laboratory and obtaining the reports before submitting chargesheets. However, a rush to file a chargesheet without waiting for the reports weakened the prosecution’s cases.Assistant public prosecutor J V Joshi said, “Eighty cases were disposed of as the court can’t take cognisance without a mandatory FSL report. Police should not rush to file chargesheets. They should concentrate on gathering evidence and following the proper procedure during the investigation to avoid such acquittals.”The court also observed that it was impossible to determine whether the blood samples had reached the forensic laboratory or whether they had been preserved, handled and tested in accordance with the mandatory procedure.Under the prescribed process, a suspect detained for alcohol consumption is taken to a hospital, where a doctor collects a blood sample. The sample is then sent to FSL in Gandhinagar and is required to reach the testing authority within seven days of collection.The safeguards governing the collection, transportation and testing of blood samples must be strictly followed to prevent tampering, contamination or deterioration that could affect the test results.
