Starting July 1, three new criminal laws will come into effect, reshaping the legal landscape in India by replacing the British-era criminal laws. This transition has sparked a mix of apprehension and preparedness among the legal community.
On December 25, 2023, President Droupadi Murmu gave assent to “The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023”, “The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023”, and “The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023”.
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These new criminal laws which take effect from July 1, 2024 replace the earlier criminal laws — the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), and the Indian Evidence Act.
Extensive training
A judge at the district court in the capital, speaking to The Hindu, highlighted the extensive training undertaken by Delhi judges. “Every single judge in Delhi underwent training at the Delhi Judicial Academy, Dwarka. We had one-on-one lectures. Everybody felt that while we will face difficulties, we will solve them.”
The judge added, “Starting July 1, FIRs will be registered under the new law, requiring judges to adapt their approach for each case accordingly. While the core principles of the law remain the same, there are some minor changes in their implementation”.
“The soul of the law remains the same, with a few cosmetic changes,” the judge said.
However, not everyone is optimistic. K.C. Mittal, former chairman of the Bar Council of Delhi (BCD), criticised the new laws as oppressive. “You cannot increase police remand from 15 days to 60 or 90. Even the colonial-era law didn’t have that. It is going to get worse, and you are terrorising the people by doing that,” he said.
Power to handcuff
Mr. Mittal condemned the new power to handcuff without court permission, calling it a signal of state terror among the public, which is against the findings by Justice Krishna Iyer. He added, “The apex court has held solitary confinement as violative of human rights, but the government has introduced this under the new law.”
Mr. Mittal warned of chaos in courts, citing confusion over the new provisions. “Nobody knows what to do and what not. The provisions are confusing, and nobody knows what will apply when and how. There is utter chaos in the minds of lawyers and everyone in the courts,” he said.
Sanjeev Nasair, Vice-Chairman of the BCD, along with four other former office-bearers, expressed concerns in a letter to Home Minister Amit Shah.
He said the appointment of public prosecutor to prosecute cases in the High Court and the district court was in exclusive domain of the Delhi government. “Unfortunately, by way of these, the Central government wants to usurp the powers of the Delhi government to dictate and keep public prosecutor under your thumb,” Mr. Nasair said.
“It may be noted that the public prosecutor is an independent institution and an agent of justice to assist the court rendering justice not a spokesperson of police or any government, and assuming such powers would be interfering in the administration of justice by the judiciary,” he said in the letter.
Senior advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey has expressed concerns about potential confusion following the implementation of the new law on July 1. He noted that during legal proceedings, the issue of whether the law should be applied retrospectively or prospectively will inevitably arise.
Zero FIRs
One of the most challenging aspects of the new law, according to Mr. Dubey, is the mandatory registration of zero FIRs. “Previously, the concept of zero FIR existed but was not mandatory. Now, regardless of whether the offence was committed within the jurisdiction of a particular police station, the FIR must be registered,” he said.
Mr. Dubey explained that after the registration of a zero FIR, the police are required to conduct a preliminary inquiry. If the inquiry reveals that the offence did not occur within their jurisdiction, they must transfer the FIR and any collected materials to the appropriate police station.
“This change can lead to abuse of the legal process,” Mr. Dubey warned. “For instance, if I am in Delhi and the offence occurred in Delhi, anyone can register the FIR in Andhra Pradesh, Chennai, or Chandigarh. The police station where the FIR is registered will decide whether and when to transfer the matter. Meanwhile, the police officer at that station can arrest you, only to later declare that the offence falls under Delhi’s jurisdiction. By that time, your fundamental rights could be encroached upon.”
Mr. Dubey emphasised that the intention behind the Section is to prevent people from suffering and running from one place to another to register a complaint. However, he cautioned, “There would be a lot of misuse of this process.
The senior advocate said, “I think the law will develop slowly. Everything would be tested by the court. There should have been a detailed debate on all these things, but now the law has come, so we have to go forward with it.”
On the preparedness of lawyers to deal with the new laws, Rahul Singh, vice-president, New Delhi Bar Association said, “The New Delhi Bar Association has conducted seminars on the new laws and lawyers are fully ready”.
