Importance of Evidence of DNA in Perspective of Islamic Jurisprudence

DNA or Genetic fingerprinting technology is the topic of the day. It has revolutionized the forensic science. Islamic Jurisprudence has its own procedure and priorities of evidences, which mainly depend upon eyewitness, personal evidence and testimony. It was introduced in 1984. It is used in the identification of parentage, forensic sciences, treatment and diagnosis of diseases. The sequence of base pairs varies from person to person and the relativity of persons is identified by identifying the matching of base pairs. The Contemporary International Institutions of Collective Ijtih฀d have launched heavy discussions on this new evidence and reviewed relevant serious law making efforts based on it, which results in very valuable Fat฀w฀ and resolutions, regarding the use of DNA techniques, as evidence in criminal cases and its limitations and scope in Islamic Jurisprudence. This article discusses and concludes that the genetic fingerprinting technique should be used for the attestation of the cases related to it, along with the traditional way to acquire evidences, even though, it does not have self-sustaining priority, but depends upon other evidences for making a judicial verdict. Like other forensic evidences, it has also errors and intervening factors that limit its accuracy. Therefore, the decisions of crimes liable to ฀ud฀d, Qi฀฀฀ and Diyyat should not depend only upon DNA fingerprinting. Thus, we can say that in the absence of stipulated evidences, rebuking punishment may be sentenced on the basis the evidence of DNA.

Innovation in Practicals

This study highlights the fact that practical work in science teaching needs radical changes, if we want our students to become problem solver' scientists. WHAT I SET OUT TO DO I introduced the skills of hypothesizing, planning the experiment and inferring, in the conduct of practical work, in a government school. The time I had was 28 days. WHAT I DID I worked 4 days a week, during which I conducted interviews before and after the introduction of the new approach. In my sample were 2 teachers and 5 students. Initially the teachers planned the lesson with me, and then they brought it to action in the science classroom. WHAT I FOUND OUT It was found that presently the emphasis was on rote learning. Students blindly followed the procedure directed by the teacher. All the instruction and even conclusions were determined before. Also found was the fact that the new strategy of hypothesizing, planning the experiment and inferring which I introduced in my study, provides opportunities for the students to think and reflect upon their work. This would aid their cognitive development and help them to become real problem solving scientists. Also studied in this dissertation were the various constraints such as time and resources. The effect of the present examination system which promotes rote learning has also been discussed.