New Criminal Laws to come into force from July 1 this year
Feb 24, 2024
New Delhi [India], February 24 : The Centre Government through the Ministry of Home Affairs on Saturday notified that the three Acts - Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Sanhita shall come into force on July 1, 2024.
The Government issued three different notification for each new law which stated that "the Central Government hereby appoints the 1st day of July, 2024 as the date on which the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Sanhita, except the provisions of the entry relating to section 106(2) in the First Schedule, shall come into force.
The Laws were passed by the Indian Parliament, on 21st December, 2023, which there upon received Presidential assent on 25th December, 2023 and was published in the official gazette on the same day.
Earlier, the Bar Council of India (BCI) issued a statement and stated that these criminal law aims to replace the existing body of criminal laws in India.
BCI appreciated removing Colonial and outdated criminal laws , such as the sedition section, which fosters a more inclusive and democratic legal environment by respecting freedom of expression.
The BCI recognised the introduction of provisions addressing contemporary challenges, including the categorization of mob lynching as a separate offense, encompassing hate crimes based on race, caste, community, sex, language, or place of birth. Effective implementation and victim support will be critical. Sensitivity training for police and judiciary could help ensure unbiased and trauma-informed handling of such cases.
On the issue, Dr Adish Aggarwala, President, Supreme Court Bar Association on Thursday said, many a colonial-era law had been hanging around like an albatross around the neck of the Indian legal fraternity even 75 years after Independence.
Now, the soul and spirit of the Bharat have been infused into the key criminal laws Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Sanhita that would replace the archaic and outdated Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Evidence Act.
Dr Aggarwala also said, that the entire lawyer fraternity across the Bharat gratefully acknowledges and recognizes the beneficial aspects of the recast penal laws, and pledges its unstinted support and cooperation to make this historic effort of the union government a success, stated in media statement issued.
