Nagpur: The Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court has held that an accused, or the defence, has no right to demand an inspection of a crime scene, adding that the decision regarding whether such an inspection is necessary to understand the evidence rests within the trial court’s discretion.
It also took into account that the alleged incident dated back to 2022–23, while the application for inspection was filed only in June 2026, raising the possibility of delaying the trial. The court dismissed a petition filed by a teacher accused of sexual assault on a minor girl. The petitioner had sought permission from the trial court to inspect the school’s science laboratory, arguing that, given its size and layout, the alleged assault could not have occurred there. The court stated that these aspects could be assessed based on the evidence already on record. Refusing to interfere with the trial court’s order, High Court dismissed the petition.
The bench noted that the testimonies of seven prosecution witnesses had already been recorded. It also noted that the witness present during the preparation of the panchnama had been cross-examined, and the victim had been questioned regarding the laboratory’s size and structure.
The trial court rejected the request on July 24, prompting the accused to challenge the order in High Court. Justice Mehrosh Pathan heard the matter and observed that a request for inspection cannot be made merely to dispute the ‘spot panchnama’ (crime scene inspection report) prepared by the prosecution.