New Delhi: Mandatory videography during search and seizure by the police, issuance and execution of summons and warrants electronically and examination of complainants and witnesses using technology for speedy trials — these are some of the major provisions that are part of the three new Bills introduced in the Lok Sabha by Union Home Minister Amit Shah Friday.
These changes, Shah claimed, will ensure speedy justice for all citizens.
Shah introduced three new bills in Parliament to repeal the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860, the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973, and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 and replace them with three new laws named — Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023, and the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill 2023, respectively. For now, the Bills have been sent to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs for detailed scrutiny.
According to him, delay in the delivery of justice due to complex legal procedures, large pendency of cases in courts, low conviction rates, low-level use of technology in legal system, delays in investigation system, complex procedures and inadequate use of forensics were among the biggest hurdles in speedy delivery of justice.
“The home minister has time and again stressed on the usage of technology and forensic in investigations to secure a higher conviction rate, and these Bills are a result of that,” a senior officer from the ministry of home affairs told ThePrint.
According to the CrPC Bill, technology will be used by the police to conduct search and seizure operations, and the entire process of search by the police or seizure of any property shall be videographed through electronic devices. Such recording shall be sent by the police to the concerned magistrate without any delay.
The officer said that videography during search and seizure will ensure transparency, quelling doubts about police motives, and enforcing accountability for unbiased investigations.
Similarly, the issuance of summons and warrants electronically will speed up the process in court, the officer added.
This innovation plugs the common loophole of summons non-receipt, which is a cause for repetitive delays.
“Right now, if a person doesn’t turn up in court, he or she can claim that they did not receive the summons. So, the matter is adjourned for a later date, leading to a delay. With electronic summons, this will no longer be a hindrance, and the court proceedings will be streamlined,” he added.
Moreover, the examination of complainants and witnesses using technology will also significantly speed up trials. According to the provisions listed in the Bhartiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, or the Indian Evidence Act, ‘evidence’ includes any information given electronically, which would permit the appearance of witnesses, accused, experts and victims through electronic means.
This means that complete trials, including cross-examinations or recording of statements, could be done via video conferencing. The proposed Bill says that while recording statements of victims of sexual crimes, video recording will be mandatory.
“So many times, the witnesses are unable to appear in court, which makes the trials drag on for years. With this provision, the process will speed up significantly,” explained the officer.
According to the Bill, the definition of documents under criminal laws has been expanded to include all kinds of electronic and digital devices and data, including emails, SMS, device data and more.
“It provides for the admissibility of an electronic or digital record as evidence and it shall have the same legal effect, validity and enforceability as paper records,” says the proposed Bill.
Moreover, it seeks to expand the scope of secondary evidence to include copies made from the original as evidence.
“Oral accounts of the contents of a document given by some person who has himself seen it and giving matching hash # value of the original record will also be admissible as proof of evidence in the form of secondary evidence,” the Bill says. Videography while recording the statement of victims of sexual crimes will also be made mandatory, it adds.
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The Bills and changes
Speaking on the last day of Lok Sabha, Shah said that the three Bills were prepared after comprehensive discussions and studies, and took four years.
Once the Bills are cleared, the IPC, which has 511 sections, shall be replaced by Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which will have 356 sections. In this, changes have been made in 175 sections, while eight new sections have been added and 22 sections have been repealed.
The CrPC shall be replaced by Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, which will have 533 sections. In this, 160 sections have been changed, nine new sections have been added and nine sections have been repealed.
The Evidence Act, which will be replaced by the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, will have 170 sections. The existing Act has 166 sections, of which 23 have been changed, one new section has been added and five sections have been repealed.
Addressing the Parliament, Shah said the proposed legislations would bring about a “transformative change” in the Indian judicial system by prioritising the delivery of justice over punishment.
He added that the laws that are being replaced were essentially aimed at safeguarding the continuation of the British administration and their objective was to punish, not deliver justice. The new laws will safeguard constitutional rights and deliver justice. These laws will be imbibed with the Indian soul, he added.
Forensic examination
Another major addition to the CrPC is that a forensic examination will be mandatory in cases with offences that are punishable with imprisonment of seven years or more. A videography of the process is also made mandatory.
“On receipt of every information relating to the commission of an offence, which is made punishable for seven years or more, the officer in charge of a police station shall cause the forensics expert to visit the crimes scene to collect evidence in the offence and also cause videography of the process on a mobile phone or any other electronic device,” says the Bill.
In case where forensics facility is not available, the state government shall notify the utilisation of such facility of any other state, it added.
“This means that the use of forensics in the investigation has been made mandatory for all states and Union Territories, and this is being done to ensure an increased rate of conviction in cases. The necessary infrastructure for this will be ready within five years,” said the officer quoted above.
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Specific timelines, summary trial
The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhit, currently CrPC, has prescribed specific timelines for time-bound investigation, trial and pronouncement of judgments.
The CrPC regulates the procedure for arrest, investigation, inquiry and trial of offences under the IPC and under any other law governing criminal offences.
The CrPC provides a mechanism for conducting trials in a criminal case. It gives the procedure for registering a complaint, conducting a trial and passing an order, and filing an appeal against any order. The IPC, on the other hand, is the official criminal code of India that covers all aspects of criminal law. It defines crimes and provides punishment for those crimes.
According to the Bill, the chargesheet is to be mandatorily filed within 90 days of the FIR, which can be extended by a maximum of 90 days by the court, and police will have to conclude the probe and file a chargesheet within a maximum of 180 days.
The courts will have to frame charges within 60 days of receiving the chargesheet and the judgment will have to be mandatorily delivered within 30 days after the conclusion of the hearing, and the same must be made available online within seven days, it adds.
The new Bill also has a formal provision for ‘Zero FIR’ that will enable citizens to lodge an FIR with any police station, no matter their jurisdiction. Currently, Zero FIRs are lodged but it is not a formal provision.
The Bills say that Zero FIR must be sent over to the concerned police station having jurisdiction in the alleged crime within 15 days after registration.
Moreover, for petty crimes that have a jail term of three years or less, a summary trial will be held, says the Bill. Summary trials under CrPC are applied under certain types of criminal offences that are trivial in nature, are quick and disposed of swiftly.
“Summary trial has been made mandatory for petty and less serious cases. The accused persons may be examined through electronic means, like video conferencing,” says the proposed Bill.
According to another home ministry official, “This will help with the majority of the cases as they can be concluded by the lower courts and also reduce crowding inside jails as the cases will be disposed of faster.”
Moreover, while prosecuting civil servants in criminal cases, if no sanction is received from authorities within 120 days, it will be considered as the sanction received, says the proposed Bill.
(Edited by Richa Mishra)
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