“The law should be clear, concise, and easy to understand.”–Thomas Jefferson ( 3rd US President )
The present analysis on New Criminal Laws is presented by Purujit K.Raval of LJ School of law,Gujarat University 2nd year.
India, that is, Bharat (Article 1), had three major criminal acts, i.e., the Indian Penal Code 1860, the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973, and the Indian Evidence Act 1872, which were passed by the British Raj in India, and after independence, the laws were in continuation with some or no change in them. And so, as the laws were old and outdated, Union Home Minister Mr. Amit Shah introduced three new revised criminal laws in August 2023, but the new laws were not accepted by the opposition, and they also gave few recommendations.
On December 9th, 2023, the new laws were withdrawn, and the new and revised version of the new criminal laws was introduced on December 12th in the Lok Sabha. The bill was passed in both houses, and so it got the assent of the president and will come into force on July 1st, 2024.
• The Story Timeline:-
The Union Home Minister, Mr. Amit Shah, introduced a revised version of the new major criminal laws on December 12, 2023, to replace the existing colonial-era laws after withdrawing the previous version of the new criminal laws, which were introduced in August of the year 2023.
The three bills are going to replace the Indian Penal Code, 1860, the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. The second version of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, 2023, is going to replace the Indian Penal code, 1860. The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, is going to replace the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, and the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023, will replace the Indian Evidence Act, 1872.
When the first version of the bills was introduced in August 2023, the standing committee of the 31 members of the parliament led by BJP MP Mr. Brij Lal was referred for review, and after consultation with the experts, the panel adopted its report on the bills on November 7th, 2023.
• Opposition’s review:
The opposition MPs were not happy with the bills to replace the existing colonial-era criminal laws, yet after reviewing the new laws, they pointed out several errors and recommended more than 50 changes. And in their dissent note, i.e., legal disagreement note, the opposition MPs noted that the new criminal laws lack diversity in the consultation of the experts; they questioned the haste, i.e., excessive speed in the introduction of the new laws; and they also mentioned that they are merely a “largely copy paste“ of the existing laws. In the reply by introducing the revised bill in December 2023 The Union Home Minister, Mr. Amit Shah, said, “Grammatical and language errors have been corrected. The bills were tested at duration with the aid of the Standing Committee, and it became essential to consist of the suggestions. There are no major changes. Had we persisted with the antique bills, several legitimate amendments could have needed to be made, so we were determined to introduce new bills Instead. Adequate time—forty eight hours—has been given to individuals to have a look at the bills. We do not want to pass such important pieces of legislation in a hurry.”
Views On The New Criminal Laws:
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, is going to replace the Indian Penal Code, 1860, and the new laws have many changes in them. The thought of ‘Community Service’ as a punishment for violations is presently being actualized beneath the law, centered on a more rehabilitative approach to justice. The later enactment has included “snatching” asan offense, beneath Area 304 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The new criminal law, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita of 2023, is an attempt to rethink and divert the code and has supplanted the past Indian Penal Code, 1860 and other major changes have been made in the new law.
- Mental illness’ replaced by ‘unsoundness of mind’
In a try and put off regressive terminology, the sooner model of the Bill had changed phrases which includes lunacy, intellectual retardation, and unsoundness of thoughts with ‘intellectual Illness.’ However, the panel mentioned that the term ‘intellectual illness’ is just too huge in its Import and will even consist of temper swings and voluntary intoxication. As a result, the revised Bill replaces the term ‘mental illness’ with ‘unsoundness of mind’ in a majority of the provisions. It has additionally delivered the term ‘highbrow disability’ alongside unsoundness of thoughts in segment 367 (competence to face trial).
- Enhancement of minimum punishment for ‘mob lynching’
The unique Bill made mob lynching and hate crime a separate class of homicide for the first time. The offence handled instances wherein homicide is devoted with the aid of using 5 or extra persons performing in live performance with one another, on grounds of race, caste or community, sex, location of birth, language, personal belief, or any other ground. However, it became criticised via the means of the panel For prescribing a lesser minimal sentence of imprisonment of seven years in preference to the Offence of murder, wherein the minimal sentence is imprisonment for life. Taking the Critique into consideration, the revised Bill has eliminated the minimal punishment of seven Years and now penalises mob lynching at par with murder.
- Adultery and Section 377 – ignored recommendations
Two important suggestions of the panel to consist of a gender-impartial provision Criminalising adultery, and a clause that criminalises non-consensual intercourse among men, Women, transpersons, and acts of bestiality had been omitted withinside the revised Bill. In 2018, a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court unanimously decriminalised adultery for being discriminatory and infringing upon a woman’s autonomy. However, the panel reasoned that Adultery must be criminalised in a gender-impartial way given that it’s far critical to safeguard the sanctity of the institution of marriage.
The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023
The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, ambitions to refine our crook procedure System. By putting timelines for investigations, it intends to make certain that justice is more handy and conscious of the desires of the people. In this new crook law, one notable alternate may be visible in Section 176 of the Act, which mandates research for crimes sporting a punishment of seven (7) years imprisonment or more. This means that appointed experts will be involved in conducting on-site investigations. Additionally, Section 173 of The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita embraces the brand new virtual age through permitting virtual methods for trials, inquiries, and proceedings. This shift toward documentation and lawsuits aligns with improvements in generation and allows streamline legal Processes. One modern idea is the implementation of 0 FIRs. According to It states that the FIR must be transferred to the police station to handle crimes committed in that particular area within a span of 15 days. The crime and criminal tracking system will be used for the benefit of the public and other major changes have been made.
- Handcuffing
Section 43(3) of the original Bill permitted the use of handcuffs to prevent the escape of individuals accused of serious offences and ensure the safety of police officers and staff during arrests. However, the panel recommended that this should be restricted to select heinous crimes like rape and murder instead of extending its usage to persons who have been accused of committing ‘economic offences.’ In another significant change, the power of the police to use handcuffs has been expanded beyond the time of arrest to include the stage of production before court as well.
- Proceedings via audio-visual means
In line with rapid technological advancement, the original Bill permitted the conduct of court proceedings through audio-visual means. However, certain types of proceedings mentioned in the earlier draft have been deleted, including inquiries, trials before court of sessions, trials in summary cases, plea bargaining, and trials before High Courts.
On the other hand, provisions allowing the reading out of charge to the accused, hearing on discharge, examination of witnesses, and recording of evidence in audio-visual means have been introduced in the revised Bill in sections 251, 262, 266, and 308 respectively.
- Police custody beyond the initial 15-days of arrest
The revised Bill has overlooked the concerns of the panel regarding a provision in the earlier version that allowed police custody beyond the initial fifteen days of arrest.
Section 187(3) of the Bill, which corresponds to Section 167 (2)(a) of the CrPC ,does not contain the phrase ‘otherwise than in the custody of the police’ — implying that the prescribed 15-day-period of police custody can now be an aggregate of shorter periods of custody sought over the entire period of investigation lasting 60 or 90 days (depending on the nature of the offence.)
Flagging that the provision could be misused since people, particularly those hailing from marginalised backgrounds, may be subjected to extreme custodial violence, the panel underscored that, “there is a concern that this clause could be vulnerable to misuse by authorities, as it does not explicitly clarify that the custody was not taken in the first fifteen days either due to the conduct of the accused or due to extraneous circumstances beyond the control of the investigating officer. The committee recommends that a suitable amendment may be brought to provide greater clarity in the interpretation of this clause.:
The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023
The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam has replaced the Indian Evidence Act of 1872, resulting in alterations to the structure of the Evidence Law. In today’s environment, where technology holds great importance, this new criminal law acknowledges electronic evidence as any information produced or transmitted by a device or system that can store or recover data. Section 57 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam emphasizes the recognition of electronic records as primary evidence. Moreover, the Act includes provisions that enable the electronic presentation of even oral evidence. This advancement makes it possible for witnesses to testify remotely, ensuring that digital records hold the same significance as traditional paper documents. Section 24 of the Act expands on the idea of joint trials.
- Admissibility of electronic evidence
Section 61 of the original Bill allowed the admissibility of electronic evidence by underscoring that an electronic record shall have the same legal effect as a paper record. However, there was no requirement for a certificate under section 63 (corresponding to the requirement of a certificate under section 65B of the Indian Evidence Act). This provision has now been revised to state that the admissibility of an electronic record is subject to section 63.
Analysis:
From the Vedic era to the Mughal era and then to the colonial era, the country has seen many replacements and reforms in the laws, and after independence, the country needed reforms in each and every field, especially in the field of law and order, as many of the British Raj laws were made to suppress the Indian nationals, but the country failed to see many much-needed reforms. After 75 years of independence, now the change in laws has happened, and though it is late, it is still better late than never. The 21st century India, which is Bharat, is set on the path of becoming Vishwa Guru, and that goal cannot be achieved with the old thoughts, techniques, and laws. The world has changed a lot since the British left the country, and now crimes and criminals have advanced in techniques and technology, so reforms in the current laws are needed to tackle them. India, that is, Bharat, is a free country, and therefore it should not use the laws made by the Britishers, the looters of the country. We can make our own laws and rules; we are more than capable of such things.
The new laws were passed In both houses, and they will come into force by fulfilling all the constitutional steps. The suggestions from the opposition MPs were also taken into consideration. The reforms in criminal procedure, evidence, and crimes were needed, and now they have been fulfilled. Many of the crimes have been added and changed. Many of the procedures have been changed and added, which were needed.
Conclusion:
The bills were introduced in the Lok Sabha, and the opposition opposed them. The committee was set to review the new laws by considering experts and the stakeholders in the matter, and after some changes All the new bills were passed to replace the current major criminal laws, and so the new laws came into force on July 1, 2024. After the summer vacation, the courts and law agencies will follow new major criminal laws. Now the real question is: will the new major criminal laws be more helpful to the legal system, and will they provide proper justice and punishment to the criminals? We will surely get the answers once the laws have been followed properly.
