BENGALURU: Forensic examination of soil and skeletal remains recovered by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) is now centre stage of the Dharmasthala alleged burial case.
With no major discovery of skeletal remains in Dharmasthala after digging 17 spots listed by a former sanitation worker, who claimed to have buried multiple bodies between 1995 and 2014, the focus is now on forensic examination of the recovered skeletal remains and soil.
Soil science based on Locard’s principle, that every contact leaves a trace, is an important discipline in forensics and mandatory in exhumation cases. “Forensic analysis of bones and soil give important scientific evidence in exhumation cases. If there is poison found in bones then a chemical analysis of soil in and around the burial site will give clarity on whether death was due to poisoning or due to the presence of arsenic, lead or other chemicals present in the soil. The chemicals in soil contaminate bones and can present themselves as poison to a non-discerning eye,” said a forensic expert, who didn’t wish to be named.
He added that soil science, though undervalued, is an important toolkit in criminal case studies. “In a dry region with less rainfall and less moisture, skeletons can remain preserved for 30 to even 50 years in the soil, but in coastal regions and places near river bodies, with heavy rainfall and high soil moisture, bones can be fragmented, powdered, reduced to micro residues in 10 to 15 years. In such places, exhumation after a long period of time may not result in the discovery of skeletal remains. Under such circumstances, lack of material/visual evidence may not necessarily mean absence of burial,” said the expert.
At the time of exhumation, which is conducted in a controlled manner to avoid erasing signs of archaeological remains and diluting important chemical markers, forensic experts collect around 500 gm of soil sample along with skeletal remains for chemical analysis, and match their findings.
“The process is time consuming and may take 45 to 90 days. The SIT will have to wait and carry on its ancillary investigation meanwhile,” said sources.