Today, on 11 August 2023, in the Lok Sabha, the Central Government presented three bills aimed at repealing and replacing the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), and the Indian Evidence Act. These bills were introduced by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The bills are as follows:

  • The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023: This bill seeks to consolidate and amend provisions related to offenses and other connected matters. (replacing Indian Penal Code, 1860)
  • The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023: This bill aims to consolidate and amend the law concerning criminal procedure and related matters. (replacing Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973)
  • The Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023: This bill intends to consolidate and establish general rules and principles of evidence for a fair trial. (replacing Indian Evidence Act, 1872)
These bills were listed for introduction in the supplementary list of business and were subsequently referred to the Standing Committee on Home Affairs. It is worth noting that in March 2020, the Central Government formed a Criminal Law Reforms Committee, chaired by Professor Dr. Ranbir Singh, the former Vice-Chancellor of National Law University Delhi. The committee, which included other esteemed members, such as Professor Dr. GS Bajpai, Professor Dr. Balraj Chauhan, Senior Advocate Mahesh Jethmalani, and GP Thareja, was tasked with making recommendations for revising the IPC, CrPC, and the Indian Evidence Act.

In February 2022, the committee submitted its report to the government after gathering public input. Subsequently, in April 2022, the Law Ministry informed the Rajya Sabha that the government was undertaking a comprehensive review of the criminal laws.


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