Food blogger Aaftab Amin Poonawala, 28, strangled his 26-year-old live-in partner Shraddha Walkar to death before cutting her up into 35 pieces and storing them in the fridge. The incident took place on May 18 at their rental home in Mehrauli, Delhi, after the two had a heated argument over an alleged affair that Poonawala was having.

What is truth serum, the drug used in narco tests?

Truth Serum, sodium pentothal, is injected during narcotic analytical testing. Sodium pentothal reduces a person’s self-consciousness, enabling him or her to speak freely. The person loses inhibitions and enters a hypnotic condition during the test. Examiners can ask questions at this point and receive truthful responses from the accused. 

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A forensic specialist, investigative officer, or psychologist has to be present while a narco test is being conducted. It is a less intense substitute for other popular third-degree treatments used by investigative agencies.

Discovery of Truth Serum 

Dr. Robert House, an obstetrician, is credited for discovering this medication. His patients would enter a state known as “twilight sleep,” during which they would spontaneously transmit information when he gave them the famous obstetric anesthetic medication scopolamine. After conducting multiple tests, Dr. House concluded that scopolamine might be used to simply coerce patients into telling the truth. In an effort to demonstrate, two inmates from a Dallas jail agreed to serve as test subjects in 1922, putting this theory to test. Their protestations of innocence seemed sincere while they were under the effects of the “truth-inducing drug.”

The procedure of the test 

A hypnotic drug called sodium pentothal, commonly known as Thiopentone, is injected into the subject. The dosage, however, is determined by the patient’s age, sex, and other medical issues. An improper dosage can cause someone to die or go into a coma. Other safety measures must also be observed while carrying out the test. The patient is sedated and put to sleep after receiving the medication.

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The significance of drug analysis

Sodium Pentothal is one of the barbiturates used in narco analysis. It is combined with other tests including the lie detector test, polygraph, psychological profile, and brain mapping.

Since getting information from a reluctant source is the most time-consuming part of a criminal investigation, narco-analysis offers a straightforward, non-violent way to know facts.