Tag: GS 2 || Polity ||Judiciary || Judicial Reforms

Why In News?

• The Home Ministry is set to amend various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

About IPCs

• The Indian Penal Code (IPC) is the official criminal code of India.
• It is a comprehensive code intended to cover all substantive aspects of criminal law.
• The code was drafted in 1860 on the recommendations of first law commission of India established in 1834 under the Charter Act of 1833 under the chairmanship of Macaulay.
• It came into force in British India during the early British Raj period in 1862.
• However, it did not apply automatically in the Princely states, which had their own courts and legal systems until the 1940s.
• The Code has since been amended several times and is now supplemented by other criminal provisions. 

Why IPC needs revamp?

• The rebooting of IPC introduced by the British in 1860 was necessary as it is primarily based on the spirit of “master and servant.”
• In the British era, the police were raised to protect their interests, but now their duty is to “protect the people”.
• There is uneven punishment for crimes of grievous nature. For example — snatching of chains or bags on road. It could be life-threatening in some cases but the punishment is not commensurate with the gravity of the crime.
• Depending on the whims of the police, it is booked under robbery or theft. We have to standardize the punishment.

Earlier amendments

• In 2016, the Home Ministry had proposed insertion of two stricter anti-racial discrimination provisions in the IPC.
• The two amendments — Section 153A and Section 509A “to deal with racially motivated crimes” received lukewarm response from the States.

What is the proposal?

• The Home Minister recently said that the Bureau of Police Research and Development should work on the proposal to amend the codes.
• The Ministry wrote to all States and Union Territories seeking suggestions in this regard.
• Two committees comprising legal luminaries have also been constituted by the Ministry.

What is the need for caution?

• While the revision of the codes is essential in many ways, it should not be unprincipled or unguided amendments.
• In the process, it is suggested to first look into –
• the general principles of criminal law
• the language of the IPC.
• the rules which should govern its
• Criminal law is considered to be the most apparent expression of the relationship between a state and its

What are the principles to be considered?

Victims – Victimological underpinnings ought to be given a major thrust in reforming laws to identify the rights of crime victims.

• The following point towards the increased role of victims in the criminal justice system:
• launch of victim and witness protection schemes
• use of victim impact statements
• advent of victim advocacy
• increased victim participation in criminal trials
• enhanced access of victims to compensation and

Offences – Construction of new offences and reworking of the existing classification of offences is another priority.

• This process must be informed by the principles of criminal jurisprudence which have substantially been altered in the past four decades.
• For instance, liability questions in offences need a fresh look.
• Criminal liability could be graded better to assign the degree of punishments.
• New types of punishments like community service orders, restitution orders, and other aspects of restorative and reformative justice could also be brought in this fold.

Classification – Chapters of the IPC are overloaded at several places.

• It is unnecessary to have hundreds of sections in the category of property offences.
• The scheme of chapters and classification of offences can be drastically reworked.
• Offences like criminal conspiracy, sedition, offences against coin and stamps, etc must be abolished or
• Even the chapters on offences against public servants, contempt of authority, public tranquility, and trespass can be redefined and narrowed.
• New offences under a fresh classification scheme, like those suggested by the Malimath Committee on criminal justice reforms, can be introduced.

 What is the way forward?

• India needs to draft a clear policy that should inform the changes to be envisaged in the IPC or
• Simultaneous improvements should be made in the police, prosecution, judiciary and in prisons, for the above measures to be truly effective.
• A Criminal Justice Reform Committee with a mandate to evolve criminal justice policy should be formed for this exercise.
• It should be in furtherance to the work done by the Menon Committee on Criminal Justice System, the Malimath Committee, and the Law Commission in India in this regard.

Additional Info – Malimath Report

• Justice Malimath Committee or The Committee on Reforms of the Criminal Justice System was constituted by the Home Ministry in 2000.
• The committee had submitted its report in 2003 and made recommendations on crime investigation and punishment.
• The recommendations were never implemented. It is now going to be revisited by the government.
• One of its key recommendations is admissibility of confessions made before a police officer as evidence in a court of law.
• Other recommendations are
• Stringent punishment for false registration of cases,
• Constituting a National Judicial Commission and
• Amending Article 124 to make impeachment of judges less difficult.
• Standard of “proof beyond reasonable doubt” followed in criminal cases be done away with.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/centre-all-set-to-revamp-british-era-indian-penal-code/article29752397.ece

Mains  Question

Why revamping or reform is necessary in Indian Penal Code(IPC)?