Proposed DNA Database Greatly Expands Scope of Surveillance

New Delhi: A new version of a draft law that proposed to set up a national DNA fingerprint database of criminals, including rapists, murderers and kidnappers, plans to substantially expand the type of offenders it covers to include people convicted of drunk driving and adultery.

The expanded list covers a host of offences including violations of the Motor Vehicles Act and dowry deaths, according to the ‘work-in-progress’ version of the draft reviewed by Mint. Mint has independently confirmed the authenticity of this version of the proposed legislation.

The proposed Indian database, or the National DNA databank, as it will be called, will consolidate DNA profiles from several state-level databases and maintain at least six different lists—an offenders index (that includes undertrials), suspects index, missing persons index, a crime scene index, unknown deceased persons’ index and a volunteers index. Only those who have been convicted of a crime will have their DNA profile permanently on the database. Missing persons subsequently found or suspects cleared of an investigation will be removed from the list after a court orders the manager of...