Context:

Involuntary administration of narco or lie detector tests is an “intrusion” into a person’s “mental privacy,” a Supreme Court judgment of 2010 has held. The judgment is significant amid reports that the Uttar Pradesh government wanted to subject the Hathras rape and murder victim’s family members to these tests.

About:

• Polygraph and narco-analysis tests

  • A polygraph test is based on the assumption that physiological responses that are triggered when a person is lying are different from what they would be otherwise.
  • Instruments like cardio-cuffs or sensitive electrodes are attached to the person, and variables such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, change in sweat gland activity, blood flow, etc., are measured as questions are put to them.
  • A numerical value is assigned to each response to conclude whether the person is telling the truth, is deceiving, or is uncertain.
• Narco-analysis, by contrast, involves the injection of a drug, sodium pentothal, which induces a hypnotic or sedated state in which the subject’s imagination is neutralized, and they are expected to divulge information that is true.
  • The drug, referred to as “truth serum” in this context, was used in larger doses as anesthesia during surgery and is said to have been used during World War II for intelligence operations.

Are they scientifically successful

However, neither method has been proven scientifically to have a 100% success rate and remains contentious in the medical field as well.