HC junks Upadhyay plea for NIA narco test report

The Bombay High Court in a recent order declined to direct the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to provide 2008 Malegaon bomb blast accused Ramesh Upadhyay with a copy of the result of the narco-analysis test on him.

The order was passed after the NIA, represented by special public prosecutor Rohini Sallian told the court that the prosecution is not relying on the report at all in its case.

The blasts in September 2008 a few days before Eid had killed six persons and injured over 100.

Arguing for Upadhyay, S D Khot, the amicus curiae (friend of court) appointed in the matter, contended that even if the prosecution did not rely on the document, it was obliged to give a copy to him as it pertained to investigation in connection with the offence for which he has been detained.

During the arguments, Khot relied on section 173 and section 207 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to demand that the narco-test report be made available to him.

Upadhyay underwent a narco-analysis test in November 2008, along with other accused, Sadhvi Pragya Singh and Lt Col P S Purohit.

Rejecting the arguments of the amicus curiae, the court said, "The question that needs to be addressed by us is: whether the petitioner, being an accused, can insist on furnishing a document on which the prosecution does not intend to rely in the course of trial."

In its order, a division bench of Justice A M Khanwilkar and Justice A R Joshi held that Upadhyay was not entitled to seek a specific direction to the prosecution from the court. However, the judges also said he is free to take recourse to any other permissible means to get a copy of the report. The court said if the report is in favour of the accused, he is free to use it as a defence in his trial. Upadhyay had also asked the court to direct the NIA to the mobile set recovered from him. The HC Court rejected his demand.

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