'PIL Drafted In A Casual Manner': SC Junks Plea Challenging Three New Criminal Laws

The Supreme Court refused to entertain a PIL filed against the three new criminal laws Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita

The three new criminal laws will come into force from 1st July this year.

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The Supreme Court Monday refused to entertain a public interest litigation (PIL) filed against the three new criminal laws Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita replacing Indian Penal Code 1860, Indian Evidence ACt 1872 and the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973.

After the vacation bench comprising Justices Bela M Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal expressed its disinclination to hear the PIL, the Advocate who was also the petitioner sought permission to withdraw it.

The top court also declined Tiwari's prayers to grant him liberty to file a representation before the Government raising his concerns.

The bench also told Tiwari that his PIL was drafted in a very casual manner and if he had argued more in the matter, then the court would have imposed costs.

"The petition is drafted in a casual manner," Justice Mithal observed. 

In February, a bench led by CJI DY Chandrachud had dismissed a similar petition observing that the three laws are yet to come into force.

The PIL filed by Tiwari contended that the three new criminal laws suffer from many defects and discrepancies.

In January, Advocate Vishal Tiwari had filed a PIL in the top court against the three criminal laws saying that they were passed and enacted without any parliamentary debate as most of the members were under suspension during the period.

The PIL further terms the changes brought about through the three new criminal laws as draconian and contends that they seek to establish a police state in reality. The plea further states that these laws violate fundamental rights of the people of India.

In a recent judgment, the Supreme Court observed that Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) reproduced Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) verbatim without any change. The top court urged the Centre and Parliament to make necessary changes in the new criminal code while considering pragmatic realities. 

The said section deals with providing punishment to the husband and his family for inflicting any cruelty on a married woman.

The three new criminal laws, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, which replace the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), and the Indian Evidence Act respectively, and will come into force from 1st July this year.