LS passes 3 key criminal code Bills

The Lok Sabha, with 97 Opposition members suspended for “misconduct”, passed three crucial bills to replace the colonial-era criminal laws by voice vote on Wednesday (December 20).

The three redrafted bills — the Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita, and the Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Bill — were introduced in the Lok Sabha by Union Home Minister Amit Shah last week.

These bills will replace the Indian Penal Code-1860, the Code of Criminal Procedure Act-1898, and the Indian Evidence Act of 1872, respectively.

Replying to a debate on the bills — which hardly saw any participation from Opposition parties since their members have been suspended — Shah said the proposed laws were framed after comprehensive consultations and that he had gone through every comma and full stop of the draft legislations before bringing them before the House for approval.

He said the existing criminal laws were reflective of the colonial mindset with the intention to punish and not impart justice.

“The three new bills seek to establish a justice system based on Indian thinking... The three proposed criminal laws will free people from colonial mindset and its symbols,” Shah said, before the Lok Sabha passed the bills by voice vote.

(With agency inputs)