New criminal laws need to be welcomed with changed mindset: Bombay HC chief justice
Mumbai, Jun 30: Bombay High Court Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya on Sunday underlined a natural human tendency to resist change but stressed that the newly enacted criminal laws need to be welcomed and implemented with a changed mindset.
Speaking at an event organised by the Ministry of Law and Justice titled 'India's Progressive Path in the Administration of Criminal Justice System,' CJ Upadhyaya underscored the critical role of effective implementation.
He urged those responsible for delivering justice under the new legal framework, to be implemented from July 1, to embrace their responsibilities.
"It is our natural tendency to resist change or we loathe to come out of our comfort zone. It is a fear of the unknown that causes this resistance and engulfs our rationale," CJ Upadhyaya said.
Notably, three new criminal laws will come into effect across the country from Monday, bringing widespread changes in India's criminal justice system and ending colonial-era laws.
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam will replace the British-era Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act, respectively.
"We have been dealing with the criminal justice system with the old laws for more than a century. The new enactments/law will bring with it some challenges but we have to welcome them with a changed mindset and come out of our comfort zones so that its implementation can be ensured," CJ Upadhyaya added.
The event organised by the Ministry of Law and Justice was aimed at generating awareness and facilitating discussions among stakeholders on the recently enacted criminal laws.
CJ Upadhyaya said the successful implementation of the new laws can happen only when all the stakeholders come together and work in tandem.
"The new criminal laws aim to curb judicial delays and usher in a robust use of information technology," he said.
The CJ added that teething trouble is bound to happen as in any transition from one era to another.
"We are in a transition phase. After today we will be having a new regime of criminal laws that will require a lot of preparedness on behalf of all stakeholders," he said.
Implementation of the new laws is a challenge to everybody and not just the judiciary, the Bombay HC Chief Justice said and expressed confidence that all the challenges would be met by the robust judicial system.
"There has to be an endeavour from all concerned for the effective implementation of the new laws which has been envisaged and now enacted by the Parliament," CJ Upadhyaya said.
There is a common consensus that law has been ever-changing and evolving and that is the law of nature, he said, adding that judicial interpretation, societal dynamism and the need for conflict resolution necessitates changes in law.
Union Minister of State for Law & Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal underscored the transformative nature of the new criminal laws.
"The new criminal laws are aimed at providing justice in contrast to colonial legislations where the focus was on 'punishment'," Meghwal said.
He added that the formulation of these laws involved extensive consultations with stakeholders, including MPs, and MLAs across party lines, including common citizens, and incorporated recommendations from the Law Commission of India.
This inclusive approach ensures that the legislation reflects diverse perspectives and addresses contemporary challenges in administering criminal justice, Meghwal said.
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MP cruise boat tragedy: Search ops expanded to trace four missing passengers
Jabalpur (PTI): Army divers and disaster response teams on Saturday expanded their search at Bargi Dam in Madhya Pradesh to locate a man and three children still missing after the cruise boat tragedy that claimed nine lives two days ago, officials said.
With 28 of the 41 identified passengers onboard the ill-fated cruise boat rescued safely, police are preparing to register an FIR in connection with the accident that occurred at the reservoir in Jabalpur district on Thursday evening, they said.
The search radius has been expanded to 5 km in the backwaters of the Bargi Dam, located downstream of the Narmada River, area sub-divisional officer of police (SDOP) Anjul Ayank Mishra told PTI.
Nine people drowned in the incident, while 28 were rescued, and efforts are ongoing to trace the missing persons, he said.
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According to the police, more than 200 rescuers, including around 20 Army divers airlifted from Agra, began the search operation at 5 am on Saturday to trace Kamraj, an employee of the Ordnance Factory in Khamaria, his son Tamil (5), Vijay Soni (6) and Mayuram (5).
Mishra said that an inquest case has been registered and the post-mortem of nine deceased persons has been completed.
"Our priority is to search for the missing persons. We will soon register an FIR," he said.
Investigators have said that CCTV footage near the boarding point showed 43 people heading towards the ill-fated boat, and the names of 41 persons, who boarded the vessel, have been ascertained so far.
Collector Raghvendra Singh confirmed that a search is underway for four missing persons.
The rescue operation, being carried out by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and local divers, was briefly affected around 9 am due to strong winds.
The state government on Friday ordered a probe into the incident and dismissed three crew members after survivors alleged negligence and safety lapses, including failure to provide life jackets.
The government also banned the operation of similar vessels in the state.
The boat, operated by the state tourism department, sank during a sudden storm around 6 pm on Thursday, and the wreckage was retrieved from the dam water on Friday, after the rescuers confirmed that there were no more bodies inside.
Eyewitnesses have said that strong winds made the water choppy, prompting passengers to raise an alarm and ask the crew to steer the vessel towards the riverbank.
A survivor alleged negligence by the crew and described a last-minute scramble for life jackets.
