Subhashis Mittra

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) have just completed one year of their enforcement. The three new criminal laws, billed as the biggest reform in independent India, seek to make the judicial process not only affordable and accessible but also simpler, time-bound and transparent.

Union home minister Amit Shah said the new criminal laws will ensure that all rights of citizens are protected and no criminal goes unpunished. Moreover, since all processes are online, nothing will be overlooked and justice will be delivered on time. “These laws are going to transform the criminal justice system in the country significantly. I assure all the citizens of India that it will take a maximum of three years for the full implementation of the new laws. I can also confidently say that anyone can get justice up to the Supreme Court within three years of filing an FIR,” he said at the event, ‘A Golden Year of Trust in the Justice System’, in Delhi to mark the occasion.

The BNS, the BNSS and the BSA have replaced the colonial-era Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act of 1872, respectively. The new laws came into effect on 1 July 2024. “The three laws are the biggest reform of independent India,” the home minister, who piloted the laws, said, and asserted that the use of technology will ensure that no criminal can escape punishment after committing a crime. The new laws would give priority to providing justice, unlike the colonial-era laws that gave primacy to penal action. These laws impose strict timelines on the three key pillars responsible for delivering justice to citizens—the police, prosecution, and judiciary. The new laws specify deadlines for completing investigations within 90 days, filing charge sheets, framing charges, and delivering judgments.