The date to implement the three criminal codes that were passed by the Parliament in December 2023 will be notified before January 26, a senior government official said on Tuesday.
The official added that it will take nine months to a year for the three criminal laws to be implemented across the country, and a pilot project is all set to begin in Ahmedabad in the next two months. “Except some areas that have connectivity problem, in the next one year, 90% area will have the reach of the new laws,” the official said.
The official added that 3,000 master trainers will train the police personnel who will work in a pyramid set-up percolating to each district in the next few months. A task force has been constituted under the Bureau of Police Research and Development that will oversee the training. The National Crime Records Bureau will coordinate to integrate the other wings of the criminal justice system, including the Interoperable Criminal Justice System, the National Automated Fingerprint Identification System, the Adjournment Alert Module, the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and System, among others.
The official said the integration of these independent modules would result in a faster criminal justice system, in tune with the three criminal laws. Chandigarh will be the first station to see the integration and implementation of the multiple platforms.
“The data will be stored in the cloud. The thrust is on scientific investigation and to promote forensics-based investigation. Nine hundred mobile vans will be sent to 885 districts at a cost of ₹55 lakh each, [with] 25% cost to be borne by the States. [The] entire criminal justice process, including the judiciary, will soon be online,” the official said.
The official said that Home Minister Amit Shah has spoken to the Chief Ministers of all States, barring two, on the creation of the post of a separate Director of Prosecution in each district. “All States have welcomed the move. This will give the power to challenge acquittal of an accused in any case to the victim. They will not be at the mercy of the Public Prosecutor or the police,” the official said.
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which replaces the Indian Penal Code, 1860; the Bharatiya Sakshya (BS), which replaces the Indian Evidence Act, 1872; and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which replaces the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 were notified in the Gazette of India on December 25, 2023.
The official added that though cases against fugitives and those wanted in terror cases have been registered under the IPC in the past, their trial-in-absentia could be held under the BNSS.
“Irrespective of when the case was registered, the judicial trial can be held under the new laws. Many economic offenders sitting in foreign countries take the plea that they have not been convicted by any court here. Now, they will not be able to take the plea, paving the way for extradition,” the official said.
“Any supplementary charge-sheet that is to be filed after the dates for the new laws are notified will have to be done per the new codes. That the case was registered under IPC will have no bearing,” the official said on the confusion over supplementary charge-sheets. “The BNSS stipulates that charge-sheets will have to be filed within 90 days; no further extension will be given. Police cannot drag the case for years in the name of investigation,” the official added.
