A Matter of Humanity

Yashovardhan Azad

A new criminal justice system (CJS) is on the anvil amidst wide speculations about whether it will fulfill the long-standing needs of a restive nation, hungry for reforms in key sectors. After all, new laws, rules and regimes in a democracy are meant to serve the needs of the common man.

Criminal justice systems all over the world are under constant scrutiny to ascertain whether they dispense justice according to the rule of law. The World Justice Report 2022 (WJP) Rule of Index opined that rule of law declined globally for the fifth year in a row. WJP assessment of laws and regimes is based on satisfying universal principles of accountability, fairness of the laws, access to justice and impartial and timely justice delivery.

Justice dispensation is done through an established set of institutions namely the police, prosecution, judiciary and the prisons, with a greater onus on such institutions in a democracy like India. The agencies are expected to uphold the highest principles of accountability to law and fundamental rights while apprehending the accused, bringing them to trial and awarding them punishment. Even prisons are meant to serve as correctional centres rather than as dungeons for suffering. The quality of a CJS is thus tested by the level of tranquility in a society. It is often said that Nordic countries offer the best quality of life in terms of freedom, transparency and dispensation of justice.

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In ancient India, kings ruled with the principle of dharma which laid down rules for right conduct. These rules were derived from the Vedic texts. Justice was based on texts, accepted customs or edicts by kings. The CJS evolved over the years from the Maurya period to the Guptas and to the Mughal times when crimes were listed out with their punishments. The British introduced their brand of CJS in colonial India in the second half