The Supreme Court has held that any forced or involuntary narco test shall be unconstitutional and invalid, setting aside a Patna High Court order that permitted such a test in Amlesh Kumar v. State of Bihar (2025). The apex court is of the view that the High Court’s order was in contravention of the guidelines given in Selvi v. State of Karnataka (2010).
A narco test is a process of investigation during which it is expected that the accused, undergoing such a test, would express the concealed facts. He is sedated by administering a certain class of substances, such as barbiturates, for instance, Sodium Pentothal, to reduce a subject’s inhibitions and reasoning ability. It is a non-violent method similar to those called polygraphs or brain mapping.
