The Indian criminal justice system is set for a major overhaul that portends increased police and state power over citizens and a shrinking of the rights of citizens, especially those accused of criminal offences.
The three main criminal laws that had formed the foundation of this system – the Indian Penal Code, 1860, the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 and the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 – are set to be replaced soon.
In the final week of its recently concluded winter session last month, Parliament passed the Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita, 2023, the Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Bill, 2023 and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita, 2023 to replace these three laws.
This is what Scroll found when it examined some of the key changes.
Lower safeguards
According to the current legal framework under the Criminal Procedure Code, an accused person cannot be kept in police custody for more than 15 days after being apprehended. After this period, they must necessarily be committed into judicial custody. The overarching condition is that total detention must not last 60 or 90 days, depending on the nature of offence.
Under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita, though, the 15-day custody can be sought in parts throughout the 60- or 90-day period by the police. As a result, the police may be able to seek custody of someone committed to judicial custody. No criteria or guidelines are given for the use of this power, which means that the police will have unchecked discretion to do this.
This story was originally published in scroll.in. Read the full story here .