{"id":36801,"date":"2023-08-11T03:19:56","date_gmt":"2023-08-10T21:49:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=36801"},"modified":"2025-04-22T01:44:45","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T20:14:45","slug":"bharatiya-nagrik-suraksha-sanhita-bill-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/bharatiya-nagrik-suraksha-sanhita-bill-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita Bill 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>What\u2019s in today\u2019s article?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Why in News?<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>What is the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC)?<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Why was the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bill Introduced?<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Some of the Main Changes Proposed in the CrPC<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Significance of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bill<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Why in News?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Three new bills to revamp India\u2019s criminal laws were introduced in the Lok Sabha by the Union Home Minister with the focus on justice instead of punishment.<\/li>\n<li>The Indian Evidence Act, <strong>Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) <\/strong>and the Indian Penal Code (IPC) will be replaced by the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023; <strong>Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023<\/strong>; and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 respectively.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><strong>What is the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC)?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Enacted in 1973 (came into force on 1 April 1974), <strong>CrPC is the main legislation on procedure for administration of substantive criminal law in India<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>It provides &#8211;\n<ul>\n<li>The machinery for the investigation of crime,<\/li>\n<li>Apprehension of suspected criminals,<\/li>\n<li>Collection of evidence,<\/li>\n<li>Determination of guilt or innocence of the accused person and<\/li>\n<li>The determination of punishment of the guilty.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>It also deals with public nuisance, prevention of offences and maintenance of wife, child and parents.<\/li>\n<li><strong>The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bill 2023 seeks to replace the CrPC.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Why was the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bill Introduced?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav<\/strong> will end on August 15 2023 and the journey of 75 to 100 years of independence will begin from August 16, which will create a great India.<\/li>\n<li>The Indian PM in his address from the ramparts of the Red Fort on August 15 2022, had kept <strong>Panch Pran\/ <\/strong>five vows in front of the people of the country, one of them is to <strong>end all signs of slavery<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>From 1860 to 2023<\/strong>, the criminal justice system of India continued to be operated on the basis of the laws made by the British Parliament.<\/li>\n<li>Hence, these three bills introduced in a way fulfil one of the five vows &#8211; imbibing the Indian soul to<strong> bring a big change in the Indian criminal justice system<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Some of the Main Changes Proposed in the CrPC:<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lh3.googleusercontent.com\/qwM1vRB5Suw1KSx_7KYWm3JApYbKhS5bOBw5xvLTmSmwDZRsadtGeaQuwMJANdVKc3z3P1lAo5Q4mJd_hl9-errl5LLKFZ3xqguV0vadkm5peVyqZcQEl8FDo02XoZaQUEJxyIASbOcn-uZR9Eh3msg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Greater use of technology:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>Trials, appeal proceedings, recording of depositions including those of public servants and police officers, may be held in electronic mode.<\/li>\n<li>The statement of the accused too can be recorded through <strong>video-conferencing<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Summons, warrants, documents, police reports, statements of evidence can be done in electronic form.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Communication devices:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>The Bill adds <strong>electronic communication<\/strong> including \u201c<strong>communication devices<\/strong>\u201d.<\/li>\n<li>On the directions of a court or police officer, a person is required to produce any document\/ device that is likely to contain digital evidence for the purpose of an inquiry.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Use of handcuffs: <\/strong>A police officer may be permitted to use handcuffs while arresting a person if he is a repeat offender who escaped from custody, or has committed an organised crime, terrorist act, offences against the state, etc.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Specific safeguards:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>Section 41A of CrPC &#8211; which has a prominent safeguard against arrests &#8211; will get a new number, <strong>Section 35<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>It has an additional provision: no person can be arrested without prior permission of an officer, <strong>not below the rank of a DSP<\/strong>, in cases where the offence is punishable with less than 3 years, or if the person is above 60 years of age.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Mercy petitions:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>There is a provision on procedures for the timeframe to file mercy petitions in death sentence cases.<\/li>\n<li>After being informed by jail authorities about the disposal of the petition of a convict sentenced to death, he, or his legal heir or relative can submit a mercy petition <strong>within 30 days to the Governor.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>If rejected, the person can petition the President <strong>within 60 days.<\/strong> No appeal against the order of the President shall lie in any court.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sanction to prosecute:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>A decision to grant or reject sanction to prosecute a public servant must be reached by the government<strong> within 120 days<\/strong> of receiving a request.<\/li>\n<li>If the government fails to do so, the sanction will be deemed to have been accorded.<\/li>\n<li><strong>No sanction<\/strong> is required in cases including sexual offences, trafficking, etc.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Arms in procession:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Section 144A <\/strong>of the CrPC gives the district magistrate the power to prohibit the carrying of arms in any procession, mass drill or mass training, to preserve the public peace.<\/li>\n<li>While the provisions granting powers to the DM remain as they are in Section 144 of the CrPC, <strong>the provision to prohibit carrying arms does not find a mention.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Samples without arrest: <\/strong>The Bill has provisions for the magistrate to order any person to give samples of his signature, handwriting, voice or finger impressions for the purpose of investigation without being arrested.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>Detention by police: <\/strong>There are provisions for police to detain or remove any person resisting, refusing or ignoring, or disregarding directions given as part of preventive action.<\/li>\n<li><strong>A trial in absentia: <\/strong>It is prescribed in stringent anti-terror legislation such as the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) where an alternative criminal law framework applies.\n<ul>\n<li>In such laws, <strong>the burden of proof is reversed<\/strong> &#8211; with the onus on the accused to prove himself not guilty rather than the state carrying the duty to prove guilt against the accused.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<figure class=\"media\">\n<div data-oembed-url=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=_0AeDxEuaTY\">\n<div><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_0AeDxEuaTY\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<h2>\u00a0<\/h2>\n<h2><strong>Significance of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bill:<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>It will consolidate<\/strong> and amend the law relating to criminal procedure and calls for <strong>specific timelines for time-bound investigations, trials and judgements.<\/strong>\n<ul>\n<li>It will ensure speedy delivery of justice.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>The draft legislation falls in line with the government\u2019s <strong>Digital India initiative<\/strong>.\n<ul>\n<li><strong>For example, <\/strong>it provides for admissibility of digital or electronic record as evidence, which shall have the same legal validity and enforceability as a paper record.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li><strong>The legislation adopts a citizen centric approach<\/strong> for supply of a FIR and informs victims about the progress of the case, including by digital means.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Summary trial<\/strong> has been proposed for petty offences. <strong>A \u2018Zero FIR\u2019 can be lodged<\/strong> at any police station and the FIR must be transferred within 15 days to the police station having jurisdiction over the place of crime.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><strong>Q1) What is the Digital India initiative?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Digital India is a flagship programme of the Government of India with a vision to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. The programme was launched on July 1, 2015 by the Ministry of Electronics and IT.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Q2) Why was the Malimath Committee constituted?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>The Malimath Committee was constituted in 2000 to suggest an overhaul of the century-old criminal justice system. The Committee felt that the existing system weighed in favor of the accused and did not adequately focus on justice to the victims of crime.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Source:\u00a0<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-law\/key-provisions-and-processes-proposed-in-bill-to-replace-crpc-8888602\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><u>Key provisions and processes proposed in Bill to replace CrPC<\/u><\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-law\/change-in-crpc-even-if-the-accused-is-not-present-trial-can-still-proceed-8888605\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><u>IE<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bill 2023 seeks to replace the CrPC of 1973.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":36802,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-36801","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-mains-current-affairs","8":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36801","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36801"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36801\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36802"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36801"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36801"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36801"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}