CHAIN OF CUSTODY AS THE BACKBONE OF FORENSIC SCIENCE: A CRITICAL LEGAL ANALYSIS
AUTHOR – DHATHATHREYAN R* & SUGITH KUMAR R.G**
* STUDENT AT SCHOOL OF EXCELLENCE IN LAW, TAMIL NADU DR. AMBEDKAR LAW UNIVERSITY
** PROFESSOR AT SCHOOL OF EXCELLENCE IN LAW, TAMIL NADU DR. AMBEDKAR LAW UNIVERSITY
BEST CITATION – DHATHATHREYAN R & SUGITH KUMAR R.G, CHAIN OF CUSTODY AS THE BACKBONE OF FORENSIC SCIENCE: A CRITICAL LEGAL ANALYSIS, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 6 (2) OF 2026, PG. 114-123, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.
Abstract:
The increasing reliance on forensic science has significantly transformed modern criminal justice by introducing scientific methods for establishing guilt or innocence. However, the evidentiary reliability of forensic science does not depend solely upon scientific accuracy but also upon the procedural integrity governing the collection, preservation, handling, analysis, and presentation of evidence. The concept of chain of custody serves as the fundamental mechanism ensuring such integrity by maintaining a continuous and verifiable record of evidence from the crime scene to the courtroom.
This research paper extensively analysis the procedure of chain of custody. It mainly discusses the meaning and tends to define the chain of custody. This paper outlines the availability of legislative framework in India which deals with the chain of custody and the admissibility of evidence in the courts and also deals with the new criminal enactments i.e. Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023. There are many instances where the prosecution fails to prove beyond reasonable doubt in criminal cases and the accused gets acquitted on ground of contamination of crime scene, loss of integrity of evidence which leads to inadmissibility of evidence in the case. Chain of custody has a direct linkage with the admissibility of evidence in court. This paper also exclusively deals with the question of whether India is in need for a uniform standardized procedure for chain of custody or a national policy for standard operating procedure to be followed by the officials involved in the investigation. In this paper we compare the existing scholarly works related to chain of custody and identify the research gap in this paper. This paper also analyses the judicial interpretation of chain of custody and also the cases where judiciary stressed the importance of chain of custody. There are instance cases where the judiciary were restrained to acquit the accused due to the broken chain of custody.
The paper concludes by recommending standardized statutory guidelines, technological evidence-tracking systems, institutional training, and judicial reforms to strengthen evidentiary integrity and enhance public confidence in the administration of criminal justice in India.