Parliamentary Committee Adopts Criminal Justice Reform Bills

• 08 Nov 2023

Recently, a Parliamentary Committee of Home Affairs has approved three bills aimed at overhauling the criminal justice system in India, with strong support, despite objections from 10 Opposition members in the panel.

Key Points

• Government Justification: The government defended the use of Hindi names, stating that they will be written in English to meet constitutional requirements under Article 348.
• Additional Concerns: Opposition members also voiced concerns about other provisions in the proposed laws, including the retention of the death penalty.
• Parliamentary Presentation: The committee's report will be presented in Parliament when the winter session commences.
• Criminal Law Reforms Committee: The Centre established the Criminal Law Reforms Committee in March 2020 to recommend revisions to the IPC, CrPC, and the Indian Evidence Act. The objective was to modernize the British-era laws and expedite trials to conclude them within three years.
• Bill Replacements: The three bills in question are the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, 2023, the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023, and the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita Bill, 2023.
• These bills will replace the Indian Penal Code, Indian Evidence Act, and the Code of Criminal Procedure.
• Stricter Punishments: The proposed laws include provisions for harsher penalties for crimes against women and children, including the death penalty for the rape of minors.
• Community Service and Police Custody: The bills intend to formalize community service as a punishment for minor offenses and increase the period of police custody to up to 60 days.
• Jail Decongestion and Police Accountability: The proposed laws aim to decongest prisons by releasing convicts who have served half their sentences, establish police officer accountability for arrests, suggest the videography of raids, and enable a magistrate to visit a victim's home to record statements.
• Sedition Law Reformation: The colonial-era sedition law will be replaced with Section 150 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, addressing "acts endangering sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India."
• The punishment for sedition may be increased from three years in prison to a life term or up to seven years of imprisonment.