All you need to know about India's DNA profiling Bill

Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid (DNA) is the blueprint of the body composition. A human being’s DNA contains 3 billion characteristics that will define all aspects of his biology.

The technique first came up in 1986, when a British genetic researcher Alec Jeffreys, along with Britain’s Forensic Science Service members Peter Gill and David Werrett, managed to use 13 of these characteristics to create a DNA profile.

They used this technique to prove the innocence of a man being held for the rape/murder of two girls and catch the true criminal after attempting to match DNA samples from over 5,500 individuals.

Many countries use DNA profiles for crime investigations. The creation of a DNA database could be used for criminal investigation, disaster identification and forensic science.

A petition filed by NGO Lokniti Foundation stated that India does not have a national DNA database to address the issue of thousands of unclaimed dead bodies that are reported annually.

Thus, a bill on DNA profiling would possibly enable the authorities to maintain records of unidentified and unclaimed dead bodies or missing persons.

Why is it controversial?

A Wire report states that data rights issues are the main chinks in the bill. There is no clear action plan to safeguard the privacy and the safety of the DNA profiles against both thefts and contamination as well as the time period till availability to the stakeholders concerned, namely scientists, law enforcement and other agencies.

The bill has assumed relevance given the recent Supreme Court debates surrounding the right to privacy as a fundamental right.

How does the draft bill provide safe guards?

The Mint reported the PRS Legislative Research stating that the draft DNA Based Technology (Use and Regulation) Bill, 2017 has five important provisions to safeguard the citizen’s privacy, which include:

a) The DNA profiling would be used only for identification purposes and not for any other details.

b) No bodily substances will be taken without previous consent in writing. However, according to the Wire report, the consent clause is not applicable for people on the more serious end of the criminal justice system. For persons accused of a crime that is punishable either by death or by a sentence of more than seven years in prison, prior consent need not be sought.

c) A statutory body called the DNA Profiling Board will be responsible for supervision, inspection and assessment purposes.

d) People found guilty of flouting the norms proposed by the bill are liable to receive three years' imprisonment and a hefty fine. (up to Rs 3 lakh, according to the Wire report)

The Wire also pointed out that a person’s DNA profile can only be used for comparison in the index if the person has been suspected of a crime, or is a previous offender himself.

Also, if an individual is let go after a trial, there is no provision in the draft for the person to remove his records from the databank until a written letter is written to the director of the databank for the same.

Here are few of the countries that have implemented a national DNA database:

United States

The United States holds the largest DNA database, with the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) containing more than 150,000 DNA profiles contributed by 73 countries as of 2014.

According to information on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's website, anyone wishing to access this database needs clearance from the Interpol.

United Kingdom

The UK maintains the National DNA Database (NDNAD) that was set up in 1995. By 2015, they had profiles of 5.7 million individuals, most of the samples having been recovered from crime scenes and taken from police suspects.

The information is stored in the form of digital code, which is based on the nomenclature of each STR.

Australia

The Australian national DNA database is known as the National Criminal Investigation DNA Database (NCIDD). The database uses 9 STR locations and a sex gene for analysis.

Canada

The Canadian national DNA database is known as the National DNA Data Bank (NDDB) which was established in 1988 but first used in 2000.
NDDB consists of two indexes- the Convicted Offender Index (COI) and National Crime Scene Index (CSI-nat).

Israel

The Israeli national DNA database is called the Israel Police DNA Index System (IPDIS) which was established in 2007.