Hostname: page-component-669899f699-8p65j Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-05-05T00:58:01.416Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The Beehive’s Poison: Analysing Legal and Ethical Dilemmas Encircling Evidence Gathered from Sting Operations in India

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 April 2025

Laadli Singhania
Affiliation:
Symbiosis Law School, Symbiosis International (Deemed University), Viman Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra, India
Virendra Singh Thakur*
Affiliation:
Symbiosis Law School, Symbiosis International (Deemed University), Viman Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra, India
*
Corresponding author: Virendra Singh Thakur; Email: [email protected]

Abstract

A potent investigative instrument in the fight against highly sophisticated criminal schemes camouflaged by layers of secrecy is the sting operation. However, its application provokes crucial questions of legality and admissibility. Additionally, lack of legal provisions governing sting operations in India has resulted in conflicting judicial stances, calling for clarity on this issue. Hence, this paper examines the intricate legal and ethical challenges surrounding sting operations, which, on one hand, aid in uncovering serious offences and foster public interest but, on the other hand, threaten to infringe privacy rights and fairness of trials. The paper analyses international practices in Canada and the United States of America, alongside judicial precedents and scholarly opinions in India, and recommends statutory inclusion of sting operations in the Indian legal system. The paper proposes stringent judicial control, elaborate ethical guidelines to avoid staging crimes, and regulations on media reporting to maintain the delicate balance of public interest versus personal rights. The paper concludes with a model draft for legislative reform that seeks to strengthen the idea of justice without weakening fundamental rights.

Abstracto

Abstracto

Las operaciones encubiertas constituyen un potente instrumento de investigación en la lucha contra esquemas criminales altamente sofisticados, camuflados tras capas de secretismo. Sin embargo, su aplicación plantea cuestiones cruciales de legalidad y admisibilidad. Además, la falta de disposiciones legales que regulen las operaciones encubiertas en India ha generado posturas judiciales contradictorias, lo que exige mayor claridad al respecto. Por lo tanto, este documento examina los complejos desafíos legales y éticos que rodean las operaciones encubiertas, las cuales, por un lado, ayudan a descubrir delitos graves y fomentan el interés público, pero por otro, amenazan con vulnerar el derecho a la privacidad y la imparcialidad de los juicios. El documento analiza las prácticas internacionales en Canadá y Estados Unidos, junto con precedentes judiciales y opiniones académicas en India, y recomienda la inclusión legal de las operaciones encubiertas en el sistema legal indio. El documento propone un control judicial estricto, directrices éticas elaboradas para evitar la escenificación de delitos y regulaciones sobre la información periodística para mantener el delicado equilibrio entre el interés público y los derechos personales. El documento concluye con un borrador modelo de reforma legislativa que busca fortalecer la idea de justicia sin debilitar los derechos fundamentales.

Abstrait

Abstrait

Les opérations d’infiltration constituent un puissant instrument d’enquête dans la lutte contre les stratagèmes criminels hautement sophistiqués, dissimulés sous un voile de secret. Cependant, leur application soulève des questions cruciales de légalité et de recevabilité. De plus, l’absence de dispositions légales régissant les opérations d’infiltration en Inde a donné lieu à des positions judiciaires contradictoires, exigeant une clarification sur cette question. Par conséquent, cet article examine les défis juridiques et éthiques complexes liés aux opérations d’infiltration. Ces opérations, d’une part, contribuent à la découverte d’infractions graves et suscitent l’intérêt public, mais, d’autre part, menacent de porter atteinte au droit à la vie privée et à l’équité des procès. L’article analyse les pratiques internationales au Canada et aux États-Unis, ainsi que la jurisprudence et les opinions savantes en Inde, et recommande l’inclusion statutaire des opérations d’infiltration dans le système juridique indien. Il propose un contrôle judiciaire strict, des lignes directrices éthiques élaborées pour éviter la mise en scène de crimes, et une réglementation de la couverture médiatique afin de maintenir l’équilibre délicat entre l’intérêt public et les droits individuels. L’article conclut par un modèle de réforme législative visant à renforcer l’idée de justice sans affaiblir les droits fondamentaux.

摘要

摘要

诱捕行动是打击被层层秘密伪装起来的极为复杂的犯罪计划的有力调查手段。然而,诱捕行动的应用引发了合法性和可采性的关键问题。此外,印度缺乏管理诱捕行动的法律规定,导致司法立场相互冲突,需要澄清这一问题。因此,本文探讨了诱捕行动所面临的复杂法律和道德挑战,一方面,诱捕行动有助于揭露严重犯罪并促进公众利益,但另一方面,诱捕行动有可能侵犯隐私权和审判的公正性。本文分析了加拿大和美国的国际实践,以及印度的司法先例和学术观点,并建议将诱捕行动纳入印度法律体系。本文提出了严格的司法控制、详细的道德准则以避免制造犯罪,以及对媒体报道的监管,以保持公众利益与个人权利之间的微妙平衡。本文最后提出了立法改革的示范草案,旨在加强正义理念而不削弱基本权利。

ملخص

ملخص

تُعدّ عمليات الخداع أداة تحقيق فعّالة في مكافحة المخططات الإجرامية شديدة التعقيد، المُغطّاة بطبقات من السرية. إلا أن تطبيقها يثير تساؤلات جوهرية حول قانونية هذه العمليات وقبولها. إضافةً إلى ذلك، أدّى غياب الأحكام القانونية التي تُنظّم عمليات الخداع في الهند إلى تضارب في المواقف القضائية، مما يستدعي توضيحًا لهذه المسألة. لذا، تتناول هذه الورقة البحثية التحديات القانونية والأخلاقية المُعقّدة المُحيطة بعمليات الخداع، والتي تُساعد، من جهة، في الكشف عن الجرائم الخطيرة وتُعزّز المصلحة العامة، ولكنها، من جهة أخرى، تُهدّد بانتهاك حقوق الخصوصية وعدالة المحاكمات. تُحلّل الورقة الممارسات الدولية في كندا والولايات المتحدة، إلى جانب السوابق القضائية والآراء الأكاديمية في الهند، وتُوصي بإدراج عمليات الخداع في النظام القانوني الهندي. كما تقترح الورقة رقابة قضائية صارمة، ومبادئ توجيهية أخلاقية مُفصّلة لتجنب افتعال الجرائم، ولوائح تنظيمية بشأن التقارير الإعلامية للحفاظ على التوازن الدقيق بين المصلحة العامة والحقوق الشخصية. وتُختتم الورقة بمشروع نموذجي لإصلاح تشريعي يسعى إلى تعزيز مفهوم العدالة دون المساس بالحقوق الأساسية.

Type
Article
Copyright
© International Society of Criminology, 2025

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Bilius, M. 2016. “The Concept and Evaluation of the Entrapment in Theory and Practice.” Pp. 388–94 in Criminal Justice and Security In Central and Eastern Europe: Safety, Security, and Social Control In Local Communities, edited by Meško, Gorazd and Lobnikar, Branko. Ljubljana: Faculty of Criminal Justice and Security, University of Maribor.Google Scholar
Das, Poulami and Jaiswal, Arpita. 2022. “Admissibility of Illegally Obtained Evidence.” Indian Journal of Law and Legal Research 4(4):45.Google Scholar
Dolginov, S. D. 2015. “Organizational and Legal Issues of Conducting a Sting Operation.” Vestnik Permskogo Universiteta-Juridicheskie Nauki 1:117–23Google Scholar
Dudney, Arthur. 2007. “Media: The Gujarat Killings, and the Ethics of Tehelka.” SAJA Forum: South Asian Journalists Association, retrieved October 29, 2024 (https://archive.is/FJXsz).Google Scholar
Field, A. 2019. “Ethics and Entrapment: Understanding Counterterrorism Stings.” Terrorism and Political Violence 31(2):260–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fitzpatrick, Ben. 2001. “Admissibility of Evidence and the Right to a Fair Trial – R. v. Shannon .” Journal of Civil Liberties 6(1):8393.Google Scholar
Franklin, Benjamin. 1755 [1963]. The Papers of Benjamin Franklin. Vol. 6, edited by Leonard, W. Labaree. New Haven, CT and London: Yale University Press.Google Scholar
Goldberg, Emily B. 2022. “A Comparative Legal Analysis between Canada and the United States on the Constitutionality of Undercover and Mr. Big Operations.” ILSA Journal of International and Comparative Law 29(1):57–8.Google Scholar
Heydon, J. D. 1973. “The Problems of Entrapment.” Cambridge Law Journal 32(2):268–86.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Joh, E. E. and Joo, Thomas W.. 2015. “Sting Victims: Third-Party Harms in Undercover Police Operations.” Southern California Law Review 88(6):1309–55.Google Scholar
Johar, Janvi. 2021. “Admissibility of Sting Operations as Evidence.” International Journal of Law Management and Humanities 4(6):281–6.Google Scholar
Khan, Ahkam and Kashyap, Parimal. 2018. “Sting Operations: The Role of Media as a Vigilante.” Indian Journal of Law and Public Policy 4(2):6171.Google Scholar
Kumar, Arvind. 2023. “Historical Perspectives of Sting Operations in India.” Journal of Humanities and Social Science 28(1):1418.Google Scholar
Larkin, Peter J. 1992. “A Reasonable Suspicion Requirement for Sting Operations in New York: Can New York Pick Up Where United States v. Jacobson Left Off?Albany Law Review 56(2):457–60.Google Scholar
Law Commission of India. 1983. “Evidence Obtained Illegally or Improperly: Proposed Section 166A, Indian Evidence Act, 1872, Report No. 94.” Retrieved October 22, 2024 (https://cdnbbsr.s3waas.gov.in/s3ca0daec69b5adc880fb464895726dbdf/uploads/2022/08/2022080824-1.pdf).Google Scholar
Law Commission of India. 2006. “Trial by Media: Free Speech and Fair Trial under Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, Report No. 200.” Retrieved October 22, 2024 (https://cdnbbsr.s3waas.gov.in/s3ca0daec69b5adc880fb464895726dbdf/uploads/2022/08/2022081057.pdf).Google Scholar
Luibrand, Erin. 2020. “The Death of the Entrapment Defense: How the Entrapment Defense Has Evolved in Federal Terrorism Cases to the Point of Extinction in the Post 9/11 Era.” Virginia Journal of Criminal Law 9(1):3362.Google Scholar
Mathur, Aneesha. 2016. “Nitish Katara Murder: Losing my Son, Long Legal Battle Has Left Deep Wounds, Says Neelam Katara.” The Indian Express, October 4, 2016, retrieved October 20, 2024 (https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/nitish-katara-murder-case-supreme-court-jail-vikas-yadav-sukhdev-pehlwan-3064162/).Google Scholar
Milton, John. 1868. Areopagitica, 1644. London: Alex Murray & Son.Google Scholar
Moore, Timothy E., Copeland, Peter, and Schuller, Regina A.. 2009. “Deceit, Betrayal and the Search for Truth: Legal and Psychological Perspectives on the Mr. Big Strategy.” Criminal Law Quarterly 55(3):354–5.Google Scholar
National Crime Records Bureau. 2020. “Crimes in India.” National Crime Records Bureau, retrieved October 24, 2024 (https://www.ncrb.gov.in/crime-in-india-year-wise.html?year=2022&keyword).Google Scholar
Norris, J. J. 2021. “Another Form of American Exceptionalism? A Comparative Analysis of Terrorism Sting Operations in the US and Abroad.” Terrorism And Political Violence 33(7):1399–423.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Phillips, Dylan. 2020. “New Technological Trends Are Changing the Legal, Ethical, and Public Policy Implications of Sting Operations.” Richmond Journal of Law and Technology 26(3):1038.Google Scholar
Puddister, K. and Riddell, Troy. 2012. “The RCMP’s ‘Mr. Big’ Sting Operation: A Case Study in Police Independence, Accountability and Oversight.” Canadian Public Administration – Administration Publique du Canada 55(3):385409.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Reporters sans Frontiers. 2024. “World Press Freedom Index.” Reporters sans Frontiers, retrieved October 20, 2024 (https://rsf.org/en/index).Google Scholar
Sethia, Aradhya. 2016. “Rethinking Admissibility of Electronic Evidence.” International Journal of Law and Information Technology 24(3):229–50.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Singh, Sandeep. 2014. “An Analytical Study of Move from Traditional Journalism to Investigative Journalism.” International Journal of Multidisciplinary Approach and Studies 1(4):353–60.Google Scholar
Srivastava, M. C. 2016. “Role of Media in Preventing and Combating Corruption.” Imperial Journal of Interdisciplinary Research 2(2):170–80.Google Scholar
Stephens, Jay B. 1986. “Setting the Sting, Minimizing the Risk: The Government’s Case for an Effective, Undercover Investigative Technique.” Criminal Justice 1(2)1439.Google Scholar
Thuyen, T. D. 2025. “Fruit of the Poison Tree Doctrine in U.S. Criminal Proceedings and Regulations on the Exclusion of Evidence in Vietnamese Criminal Proceedings.” International Journal for the Semiotics of Law – Revue internationale de Sémiotique juridique 38:443–61.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tiwari, Amrita. 2023. “String Operations as Evidence in India.” Indian Journal of Law and Legal Research 5(1):12.Google Scholar
Tummala, K. K. 2014. “Combating Corruption: Lessons out of India.” International Public Management Review 10(1):3458.Google Scholar