Centre must aid states on new criminal laws
PRIME Minister Narendra Modi dedicated the successful implementation of the new criminal laws to the nation at a grand function in Chandigarh on December 3. Home Minister Amit Shah complimented the Chandigarh police for being the first unit to enforce the new legislations, and meticulously. He hoped that the laws would become operational fully throughout the country within three years — the time needed to create infrastructure and integration of database with several portals for the purpose of coordination between the various wings of the Criminal Justice System (CJS), which are time-consuming processes.
The Home Minister stated that 11,34,698 policemen had been imparted training and more than 11 lakh criminal cases registered after July 1, 2024 under the new provisions of laws; 9,500 of them had already been decided upon. Such is the impact of these new procedures that the Chandigarh police have achieved 85 per cent conviction rate in the cases decided following the new scheme.
It was a historic moment for the people to be witness to the new-era penal legislations adopting the Indian soul, which subscribed to the people-centric and justice-oriented approach. They replaced the colonial laws as standposts of suppression and retribution, said the PM.
The occasion offered an opportunity to the professionals in the field of justice delivery to undertake an operational audit of the working of the new laws to identify bottlenecks and shortcomings and suggest measures for credible performance in future. It is said that laws do not operate in isolation.
Police investigating officers have started applying the new sections of the criminal laws in all cases. The successful implementation, though, would mean much more than that. It requires the creation of electronic and digital infrastructure and the recruitment and training of staff for the proposed digitalisation of CJS. The enactment of a large number of subordinate legislations by the states in the form of rules, operating procedures, forms and formats, etc is essential to bring the laws in full operation. Upgrading of the software relating to Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS) and Inter-Operable Criminal Justice System (ICJS) for linking between the stakeholders is necessary for proper coordination between the enforcers. Making rules for ensuring the implementation of a number of new concepts, as envisaged in the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), is the key to success.
Implementing provisions relating to the e-registration of first information report (FIR), e-service of summons and warrants, zero FIR, witness protection schemes, community service, trial in absentia, seizure and forfeiture of proceeds of crimes, time-bound disposal of case properties, sharing of forfeited proceeds of crimes with the victims of crimes, commutation of sentence, storing of videography footage, etc would not be a reality unless the operational protocols and rules are framed by the states immediately. In their absence, these novel concepts would remain on paper only.
The Home Minister called the forensic experts the 'fifth pillar of CJS.' The network of forensic science laboratories (FSLs) is scanty. To ensure mandatory visits of forensic experts on all scenes of crimes entailing punishment of more than seven years, as per the new laws, the FSLs would require extension up to the police station level. Given the limited availability of forensic experts, it is a huge task.
Integrating the main pillars of criminal justice — the police (CCTNS), courts (e-courts), jails (e-prisons), forensic lab (e-forensic) and prosecution (e-prosecution) — through the ICJS is a Herculean task. The work has just begun. It cannot be completed unless all other related works falling in the domain of state agencies is accomplished.
The time-bound disposal of case properties is a welcome feature of the new procedural law. Unfortunately, this provision had not found favour with the courts till now — perhaps, for want of urgency on the part of law enforcers or due to lack of infrastructure.
One of the striking features of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, (BNS) is contained in Section 48, which criminalises the abetting of offences in India by terrorists and gangsters sitting in foreign countries. Section 107 of the BNSS provides for the forfeiture of the proceeds of crimes. Section 356 of the BNSS pertains to the concept of 'trial in absentia' for bringing absconders of law to justice. It is intriguing that none of the criminals operating from outside the country could be nailed down under these provisions so far.
Community service as a sentence is included in the list of punishments under the BNS, but no identified apparatus and protocols are in place to execute it. Moreover, the sentence of community service has just a cosmetic effect in the new criminal laws as offenders involved only in six petty crimes out of all the offences contained in the BNS are punishable with this sentence. There is a case to extend the scope of this punishment for all first-time petty offenders. Some other noticeable anomalies are also there in the new laws, which need appropriate resolution.
Notably, it takes decades for a new law to mature and its enforcement to take firm roots in the systems. Periodical reviews, need-based tweaking and close monitoring of the laws are the key to the success of any enactment. It is also to be understood that the states are starved of funds and possess limited technical and legal knowhow. They would require hand-holding from the Central agencies to ensure timely and meaningful implementation of these penal legislations.
The PM has rightly emphasised that the legislature has done its duty by enacting the new criminal laws. Now, it is the turn of the Bar, judiciary, police and other stakeholders to assume their ownership and enforce them to ensure justice to the people.
