The Uttarakhand High Court has ruled that the smell of alcohol alone is not enough to establish a charge of drunk driving or culpable homicide not amounting to murder under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The court said the prosecution must produce scientific evidence, such as a blood test or breath analyser report, to prove that the driver's alcohol level exceeded the legal limit prescribed under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
The observation came while Justice Alok Mehrah heard a criminal revision petition filed by Amar Singh, who challenged the charges framed against him following a fatal road accident.
