Intervene Or Be Complicit: The Ethical Responsibility Of Modern Forensics

Modern forensic scientists must evolve from courtroom consultants to proactive guardians of institutional integrity as delayed forensic reports are sabotaging criminal trials and enabling systemic impunity

In continuation of earlier work that positioned forensic science as the vital and final line of defence in democratic systems, this article advances the conversation by framing forensic intervention as a civic and moral imperative. In an era where truth is not just contested but actively suppressed, forensic professionals must be recognised not merely as scientific technicians but as ethical agents, called upon to reconstruct suppressed realities, recalibrate power dynamics, and restore institutional integrity through scientifically grounded inquiries—be they multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary.

Across the globe, democratic institutions are faltering in their foundational duty to safeguard transparency and accountability. Custodial deaths, medical negligence, and preventable public tragedies are frequently dismissed as administrative technicalities. Financial crimes and institutional fraud are buried under complex legal language, while environmental disasters are disguised as “development”. Investigative mechanisms are increasingly politicised—not to uncover the truth, but to protect the powerful from scrutiny. This is not a sporadic pattern; it signals a sustained erosion of ethical governance and civic oversight.

Investigations are regularly compromised by manipulated data and deliberate delays. Public watchdog agencies are weakened by bureaucratic self-preservation, rendering them symbolic rather than functional. The failure is most glaring in custodial death cases, forced evictions, environmental violations, manipulated audits, corruption-ridden procurements, and recruitment scams, where the state is often both the perpetrator and the investigator, rendering justice structurally impossible.

In these high-stakes contexts, justice is rarely proactive or based on intervention. It arrives late, if at all, and is often driven by media pressure or public outrage. Quite often, the applications of forensic science are delayed, restricted, or procedurally diluted. Critical windows for evidence preservation are missed; timelines are distorted; institutional narratives are set in stone before scientific scrutiny can intervene. Had forensic professionals been empowered to act independently, with real-time access, a protected mandate and public-oriented accountability, the outcomes could have been markedly different.

In a climate where forensic silence is mistaken for neutrality, we must recognise that such silence is not impartiality but complicity. It withholds the very clarity needed to establish innocence or guilt. When truth is endangered and institutions are compromised, forensic science must no longer remain a reactive discipline—it must be structurally empowered and ethically bound to intervene. This intervening approach truly reflects the societal significance of forensic education and research, positioning it as a vital force in upholding the sanctity of justice and public accountability.

Reimagining Forensics as a Civic Force

Forensic science, long confined to post-facto analysis and courtroom corroboration, now stands at a pivotal crossroads. Once narrowly seen as a reactive tool summoned only after a crime occurred, it today holds immense untapped potential as a proactive, evidence-generating force capable of confronting systemic and structural injustice.

In the wake of India’s sweeping legal reforms—viz. the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA)—we see a generational opportunity for forensic science to emerge and reposition itself as a strategic pillar of public accountability. These new codes, emphasising scientific rigour and forensic integration, demand a system that is not only technically sound but also institutionally empowered.

Despite this legislative momentum, the country’s forensic ecosystem remains underfunded, reactive, and operationally constrained. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), India currently faces a backlog of over 35,000 pending forensic reports, significantly delaying justice in critical investigations. A 2023 study published in Forensic Science International revealed that forensic delays stall 30–40% of serious criminal trials—a stark indication that the issue is no longer procedural, but systemic.

In Jammu & Kashmir, the absence of formal forensic education and research infrastructure reflects a deeper institutional neglect, making such deficiencies both predictable and deeply concerning. Forensic laboratories across India are unevenly distributed, backlogged, and often lack quality accreditation. Education programmes fail to meet global benchmarks. Training remains narrow, lab-bound, and disconnected from systemic civic contexts. Crucially, forensic expertise is still summoned too late—often after critical evidence has degraded and narratives have already been shaped. This status quo is no longer viable.

Today’s governance failures—from custodial deaths and environmental cover-ups to digital disinformation and financial fraud—demand real-time forensic scrutiny. They require integrity audits in the present, not validations in hindsight.

The Case for Interventional Forensics

Interventional Forensics is not merely a new practice but a paradigm shift, redefining the identity and purpose of forensic science. Traditionally perceived as a postmortem evidentiary service called upon only after the fact, forensic science must now evolve into a proactive civic instrument embedded in the architecture of democratic oversight.

At its core, this approach recognises forensic professionals as guardians of public truth, not just courtroom consultants. Trained in objectivity, evidence integrity and scientific accountability from multidisciplinary perspectives, they are uniquely suited to environments where narratives are manipulated and facts are systematically buried.

Interventional Forensics calls upon them to step out of the lab and into the breach—ethically and visibly—wherever truth is at risk and falsehood is promoted. The operational mandate of Interventional Forensics shall be to:

1. Engage early—with scientific precision—before any evidence is lost, narratives are solidified, or harm becomes irreversible.
2. Identify anomalies in real-time investigations, audits and state procedures.
3. Collaborate across domains—with journalists, rights commissions, legal defenders and civic platforms—to ensure truth is publicly asserted, not institutionally suppressed.
4. Stand independently against state coercion, bureaucratic inertia or politicised investigation mandates.
5. Replicate methodologies that withstand public, legal and scientific scrutiny, reinforcing forensic reliability in high-stakes contexts.

Much like epidemiologists who respond to the first signs of an outbreak, forensic professionals must act as sentinels of institutional decay. They must be trained to detect the earliest indicators of civic breakdown—in data suppression, procurement fraud, recruitment scams, environmental manipulation, or custodial violence. By intervening early, while evidence is still intact and truth has the power to shape accountability, they can help ensure timely justice.

This model is not about forensic overreach; it is a rightful professional activation. It insists on timely, transparent, principled engagement, backed by legal authorisation, ethical responsibility and public legitimacy. It does not seek to displace traditional institutions but to fortify them through fact-anchored, science-driven presence in real time.

Today’s world weaponises data, manufactures narratives, and sees institutions function as instruments of denial rather than discovery. Under such conditions, forensic science must shed its reactive posture and reclaim its foundational mandate: to illuminate rather than defer, to challenge power rather than comply. When that happens, it can fulfil its highest role as a scientifically grounded, ethically driven arbiter of truth, through trace or clue evidence analysis, where facts speak louder than influence and evidence prevails over obfuscation.

This reimagined role will mark a return of forensic professionalism to its true roots—from forensics, meaning “of the forum”. Forensic science was never meant to be confined to laboratories or reduced to a supporting role in courtroom procedures. Its foundational purpose was to serve the public square, stand at the heart of civic discourse, uphold democratic accountability, and anchor truth at the intersection of power and the people.

To call this into being in today’s complex landscape, the future of forensic professionalism must be redefined. It requires a new generation of forensic practitioners equipped not just with technical skills, but with civic consciousness and ethical clarity. This future demands:

1. a) Civic and constitutional literacy to recognise systemic abuse and understand legal safeguards designed to protect the public interest.
2. b) Ethical fortitude to resist institutional pressures that seek to dilute, delay or distort forensic truth.
3. c) Cross-sectoral agility to apply forensic expertise across fields such as environmental crime, cyber forensics, public health and human rights.
4. d) Replicative rigour to ensure methods and conclusions are independently verifiable, withstand scrutiny, and shape transparent public discourse.

With this approach, forensic professionals will no longer be background technicians but active sentinels of democratic values, real-time auditors of institutional conduct, and trusted interpreters of fact in an era clouded by disinformation and constructed doubt. In crucial moments of systemic failure, it is not rhetoric but rigour that must lead.

Structural Reforms for Building the Framework

To operationalise Interventional Forensics as a real-time civic force, India—particularly Jammu & Kashmir—must pursue foundational structural and legal reforms. Central to this transformation is the creation of a National Forensic Integrity Authority: an independent statutory institution modelled on regulatory bodies in medicine and law. This authority must be vested with institutional autonomy and binding oversight powers, enabling it to enforce scientific rigour, ensure procedural compliance and safeguard public confidence in the justice system.

Encouragingly, Jammu & Kashmir is reportedly advancing plans to establish a Law University—a promising development. However, the lack of urgency in introducing forensic science education and research programmes alongside this initiative is deeply concerning. Without forensic academic infrastructure, the objectives enshrined in new legal reforms—such as BNSS Section 176(3), which mandates forensic involvement in all offences punishable by seven years or more—remain aspirational at best. Bridging this gap is not merely a matter of academic diversification but a constitutional and civic necessity.

For Interventional Forensics to succeed, forensic institutions must not only exist—they must be empowered, accessible, and equipped to act where truth is endangered and oversight has failed. Under this framework, the proposed Authority must be endowed with a robust, enforceable mandate to:

1. a) Audit ongoing investigations to uphold procedural integrity and safeguard the evidentiary chain.
2. b) Identify and flag lapses, tampering or evidence suppression before cases become irreparably compromised.
3. c) Intervene in time-sensitive public-interest matters where forensic expertise is critical to prevent miscarriage of justice.
4. d) Issue independent scientific advisories insulated from political pressure or bureaucratic interference.
5. e) Investigate and sanction systemic failures in forensic operations, including instances of negligence, manipulation or institutional misconduct.

Such powers are essential not only to professionalise forensic oversight but also to restore public trust in systems where accountability has faltered. Globally, forensic oversight is undergoing a decisive evolution. In New Zealand, ESR (Environmental Science and Research) functions as a Crown Research Institute with full scientific independence and public accountability. The Netherlands Forensic Institute, although under the Ministry of Justice, operates with legal safeguards that protect its professional autonomy. In the United States, the Innocence Project has shown how independent forensic audits, when conducted early and without interference, can reverse wrongful convictions and correct systemic injustice.

In India, the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) was established as an Institution of National Importance, advancing forensic education, research, and applied science. It plays a pivotal role in training professionals, standardising methodologies, and developing infrastructure across the country. However, its mandate must be expanded—from education and skill development to oversight, advisory authority and civic engagement—so as to align with the Interventional Forensics model.

Together, these international and national examples demonstrate a critical truth: forensic science can be a stabilising force against institutional bias and systemic failure—but only when it operates independently, transparently, and with a mandate rooted in public interest and scientific integrity.

Human Rights and Constitutional Imperatives

India’s—and particularly Jammu & Kashmir’s—continued forensic inaction amounts to more than administrative inertia; it constitutes a direct violation of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, which guarantees the Right to Life and Personal Liberty. When forensic delays, gaps or omissions lead to deaths, wrongful incarceration or failed investigations, they hinder due process and undermine the constitutional promise of justice and protection.

Landmark judgements, such as D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal, have made it clear that the absence of timely forensic evidence obstructs police accountability and reinforces a culture of impunity. In such contexts, delays and negligence are not procedural missteps; they are violations of fundamental rights with irreversible consequences.

Thus, bridging the academic and capacity gaps in forensic science becomes essential. Nationally, only a small number of public universities offer full‑fledged MSc and PhD programmes in forensic science. The situation in Jammu & Kashmir is even more alarming: despite a population of more than 12 million and rising incidents of cybercrime, drug abuse, gender‑based violence and institutional misconduct, the region has no accredited forensic education or research programmes. This academic vacuum starkly contradicts mandates under BNSS Section 176(3), which requires forensic involvement in offences punishable by seven years or more—from abduction, custodial death and conspiracy to economic fraud, terrorism, trafficking and rape.

Under these grossly deficient conditions, who will conduct court-mandated investigations? Who will guide the criminal justice system with evidence-based clarity when no institutional pipeline exists to train forensic experts in the region? This is not merely a policy lapse—it is a constitutional breakdown that undermines the rule of law and weakens the very foundation of our justice system.

In this context, it is evident that Interventional Forensics represents more than a disciplinary evolution—it is a civic recalibration. It repositions forensic science not simply as a legal tool, but as a truth-bearing institution rooted in scientific evidence, guided by ethical responsibility and anchored in public interest.

At a time when power distorts process, narratives are manipulated, and institutions fall silent, forensic science must not remain neutral or reactive. It must step forward—decisively, independently, and visibly—where democratic integrity is most at risk.

The writer is a forensic practitioner and anthropologist with an MSc and PhD in Forensic Science and an MA in Anthropology. As Co-Founder & Chairman of the RADISAT Foundation, he advocates for forensic science education, real-time justice reforms, and scientific and research advancements in crime investigation and reporting. Passionate about bridging the forensic science gap in Jammu & Kashmir, he works to integrate forensic science into academia, industry, private sector, law enforcement, and governance.

Dr Sami Ullah

sa********@***il.com