Police to conduct narco-test on Ghandy

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences on Thursday gave a green signal to a narco-analysis on top Maoist leader Kobad Ghandy who had earlier opposed the move by the Delhi police before a Delhi court, citing his illness.

"There is no evidence to suggest that the accused cannot withstand the narco test. The test should be conducted under strict medical supervision because of the long history of hypertension and urinary tract infection," the AIIMS report submitted to the court said.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kaveri Baweja, who had sought a report from the AIIMS on Ghandy's medical condition, however, reserved till October 31 the order on whether he can undergo narco-analysis test.

Armed with the positive report from the AIIMS, public prosecutor Naveen Kumar said the accused did not cooperate with the police and belonged to a terrorist organisation which had recently been involved in 'daily killings' in the country.

Kumar also referred to a Delhi High Court's judgement which, he said, has laid down that an accused, who belonged to a terrorist outift, can undergo the test with the prior permission of a court as there was a provision in the law.

Ghandy's lawyer Rebecca M John, on the other hand, opposed it saying it would violate his Constitutional right under which an accused cannot be asked to be a witness in his own case.

She also argued that his health would not allow such a test. Ghandy, a politburo member of the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist, was arrested from the national capital in September.