The government last week moved three bills in the Lok Sabha to replace colonial-era codes, with the objective of speeding up trials by laying down specific timelines, boosting rates of conviction by improving the quality of evidence and ensuring its integrity and by providing relief and protection to victims.
The new codes, written in simple language, also aim to protect women and children, de-congest prisons by releasing convicts who have served half their sentences, define terrorism and mob lynching as new offences and fix accountability of police personnel for arrests. Time bound trials, introduction of summary trials for petty crimes as well as community service, provision for recording the statement of a victim of sexual violence at her house by a woman magistrate are among highlights of the bills.
Introducing the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 and Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023 that will replace the Indian Penal Code, the Criminal Procedure Code and the Indian Evidence Act respectively, home minister Amit Shah said the move marks a paradigm shift to ensure speedy justice.
The three bills are aimed at simplifying complex procedures of IPC, CrPC and Indian Evidence Act, which led to a large number of pending cases in courts, low conviction rate, deprivation of poor and socioeconomically backward communities in getting justice and overcrowding in jails due to large number of undertrial prisoners,” Shah said.
“The colonial era laws were meant to protect the state and punish its subjects, while the proposed changes are meant for deterrence and ensuring justice to a victim,” the home minister said. “Justice delivery will be central to the new legal architecture,” he added, detailing the wide ranging consultations held with SC and HC judges, serving and former police chiefs, state governments and UTs.
Under the proposed laws, chargesheets will have to be filed within 90 days, any extension beyond this, subject to a maximum of another 90 days, can be granted only by the court. After the conclusion of arguments, the judge will have 30 days to give his verdict. The timeline can be extended for another 30 days for specific reasons which will have to be recorded.
A maximum of two adjournments can be given and that too not without hearing the other side and recording the specific reasons.
First-time offenders, except those sentenced to death or serving life imprisonment, who have served one-third of their imprisonment, will be entitled to seek bail.