Maharashtra CM Fadnavis, CJI BR Gavai attend inauguration of MNLU buildings; highlights 'Indianisation' of new criminal laws
Nagpur (Maharashtra), June 30 (ANI): Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said the three new criminal laws brought in by the Centre are not merely a change in names but a step towards the 'Indianisation' of the criminal justice system.
Fadnavis made the remarks while attending the inauguration ceremony of the Administrative Building and Central Library Building of Maharashtra National Law University (MNLU) in Nagpur. The event was also attended by Chief Justice of India BR Gavai, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and other dignitaries.
'We have made three new laws in our criminal justice system. The IPC of 1860 has been renamed as the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the CrPC has been renamed as the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and the Indian Evidence Act is now known as the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam. This is not just a change in the nomenclature, but we have also done the Indianisation of these laws,' Fadnavis said.
He further said, 'On one side, it's our Constitution, which is the greatest in the world, and the Constitution, which has evolved by many decisions of the Courts, is our fundamental value. Along with this, we must adapt ourselves to counter the evolving challenges.'
The new criminal laws, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, came into force across India on July 1, 2024, and are aimed at improving transparency, speeding up trials, and addressing modern legal challenges.
Meanwhile, the Maharashtra government on Sunday withdrew two controversial resolutions related to the implementation of the three-language policy in schools, following criticism from opposition parties.
The resolutions, passed on April 16 and June 17, had made Hindi a compulsory third language in Marathi and English-medium schools, triggering backlash over concerns of linguistic imposition.
Clarifying the state's stance, CM Fadnavis announced the formation of a committee to examine the implementation of the three-language formula. The committee will be headed by Dr Narendra Jadhav, a former Rajya Sabha MP and economist.
'A committee under Dr Narendra Jadhav will be formed to discuss the implementation of the three-language formula in the state... Until the committee submits its report, both government resolutions (of April 16 and June 17) have been cancelled by the government,' Fadnavis said.
The CM's statements sought to allay concerns after the opposition accused the government of pushing Hindi at the expense of regional languages.
The inauguration at MNLU comes amid ongoing discussions about education, language policy, and legal reform in Maharashtra and across the country. (ANI)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
19 minutes ago
- Time of India
'I was in the room': Jaishankar reveals what PM Modi told JD Vance when India pounded Pakistan; rebuts Trump
External affairs minister S Jaishankar (ANI) NEW DELHI: External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday revealed the conversation took place between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and United States Vice President JD Vance when India pounded Pakistan during Operation Sindoor. During a Q&A session after an interview, Jaishankar was asked whether President Donald Trump's claim of using trade to halt the recent India-Pakistan conflict had impacted ongoing trade negotiations between New Delhi and Washington. 'No, I don't think so. I think the trade people are doing what the trade people should be doing, which is negotiate with numbers and lines and products and do their trade-offs. I think they are very professional and very, very focused about it,' Jaishankar said during an interview with Newsweek hosted at the publication's headquarters at One World Trade Centre near the 9/11 Memorial in Manhattan. He said that there is a national consensus in India that 'our dealings with Pakistan are bilateral. 'And in this particular case, I can tell you that I was in the room when Vice President (JD) Vance spoke to Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi on the night of May 9, saying that the Pakistanis would launch a very massive assault on India if we did not accept certain things". 'And the Prime Minister was impervious to what the Pakistanis were threatening to do. On the contrary, he indicated that there would be a response from us. This was the night before and the Pakistanis did attack us massively that night, we responded very quickly thereafter," Jaishankar said. "And the next morning, Mr (Secretary of State Marco) Rubio called me up and said the Pakistanis were ready to talk. So I can only tell you from my personal experience what happened. The rest I leave to you," he said. India launched Operation Sindoor in retaliation for the Pahalgam massacre, striking at terror infrastructure inside Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), had claimed responsibility for the attack. In the operation, the forces hit hotbeds of terror in Pakistan's Bahawalpur and Muridke.
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
One year of new criminal laws: The challenges of implementation
The new criminal laws (NCLs) — the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) — came into force on July 1, 2024, amid much debate and discussion. The NCLs have been projected as encouraging speedy justice, tech-centric, forensic-centric, victim-centric, and future-proof, and have given an unprecedented spur to the conversation on the decolonisation of laws. Nevertheless, reflecting on laws should not be viewed as a static, one-off exercise, but rather as a continuous process. Given that the NCLs are approaching their first anniversary, efforts must be made to assess their implementation, feasibility, shortcomings, and challenges. Normative changes in legal regimes often create implementation ambiguities and confusion. The experience with NCLs has not been different. A change in criminal law typically affects four major components of the criminal justice system: Police, prosecution, judiciary, and the bar. The second half of 2024 saw a flurry of training programmes to familiarise functionaries with the NCLs. While the writers of this article, being educators, provided extensive training sessions which were mandated for police, prosecutors, and the judiciary, such mandatory training for practising advocates remained either noticeably absent or insufficient. Further, highlighting the divide between legislative intent-based classroom learning, the functionaries faced significant challenges in the real-world implementation of the laws. First, even as the aspirations of a 21st-century digital criminal justice system are obviated by the NCLs, their implementation has been stymied by a lack of adequate infrastructural support at the ground level. Several police stations, especially in remote areas, lack basic access to the internet and tools enabling digital access. Courtrooms, too, are not yet uniformly and adequately equipped to handle digital submissions and virtual hearings. Similarly, not all prisons are equipped with digital equipment to facilitate digital appearances in court. While these appear to be infrastructural issues unrelated to the substance of the criminal laws, it bears noting that the feasibility of the laws' implementation must be a normative consideration for legislators. Second, the primary measure to achieve speedy justice has been the introduction of timelines in the BNSS. For instance, victims must be informed about the progress of the investigation within 90 days; the supply of police reports to the accused must be completed within 14 days; discharge applications must be filed within 60 days, and charges must be framed within 60 days. These timelines are laudable in theory. However, there is a notable absence of enforcement mechanisms, other than the statutory provisions on timelines, to ensure compliance by the functionaries. Achieving these timelines realistically requires additional resources. In this context, it is pertinent to note that the India Justice Report 2025 (IJR) observes an average vacancy rate of 22 per cent in the police forces and the district judiciary, respectively. Imposing timelines without simultaneously accounting for the increased manpower requirements disproportionately burdens the existing functionaries. Third, there has been an appreciable thrust on forensics under the BNSS and BSA. However, as noted above, infrastructural and manpower-related issues continue to plague implementation. According to the IJR, there were 47 per cent administrative vacancies and 49 per cent scientific vacancies nationwide in forensics. The number of forensic laboratories capable of handling vast caseloads effectively and efficiently remains unnervingly low. Although both the Centre and state governments have taken measures to give impetus to forensics and rectify the shortcomings, such measures will take time to bear fruit. Fourth, implementation challenges have also arisen in terms of the substance of NCLs. For instance, the use of the phrase 'digital record' in Section 61 of BSA in juxtaposition to 'electronic record' in Sections 62 and 63, without any conceptual differentiation, creates avoidable ambiguities. The measure under Section 63(4), BSA, which requires a certificate from both the person in lawful control of the device and an expert for the admissibility of an electronic record, without providing for the actual notification of such experts, creates procedural difficulties. Fifth, although the revamped arrest procedure under the BNSS has introduced transparency and accountability, several practical challenges remain unaddressed. For instance, although the BNSS requires that the grounds for arrest be clearly communicated in a language understood by the accused, in practice, the arresting police officers often read out the grounds for arrest in a legalistic and formalistic manner, which is incomprehensible to the accused. Similarly, while the arrest memo must specify the grounds for arrest in furtherance of judicial directions, arrest memo formats in several states omit this. Ideally, given the pertinence of an arrest memo, a format should be appended to Schedule 2 of the BNSS. Nevertheless, there is a need for states to update the format and make the same available to all police officers. Sixth, the introduction of community service as a form of punishment under the BNSS has been a welcome reform, marking a seminal shift in Indian penology. However, the lack of a formal mechanism for implementing the provision in the BNSS provides an opportunity for uneven implementation. Some states and UTs have issued guidelines specifying how the punishment is to be executed but a majority of states are yet to do so. Most states lack the infrastructure required to implement such a punishment. The challenges are not limited to the ones discussed here. At this juncture, several of these problems can be classified as teething issues, which can and must be rectified as early as possible. This requires the institutionalisation of an implementation stocktaking and feedback mechanism that allows the functionaries of the criminal justice system to communicate the challenges they face in real time. Simultaneously, systematic research is required to pre-empt potential challenges that will arise as the criminal justice system adapts to the new regime and cases reach appellate levels. Bajpai, Vice-Chancellor of National Law University Delhi, served as the Convenor of the Criminal Law Reform Committee of India. Kaushik is an Assistant Professor at NLU Delhi
Deccan Herald
an hour ago
- Deccan Herald
Language row: Raj, Uddhav Thackeray to unite for Marathi 'victory' rally after almost 2 decades
Mumbai: The Shiv Sena (UBT) and the MNS on Tuesday issued a joint public invitation for a rally in Mumbai on July 5 to celebrate 'Marathi Vijay Diwas', following the state government's decision to withdraw its order on three-language policy in joint invitation, titled 'Marathicha Awaaz', the first official announcement of the event, carries no party symbol or flag, except a graphic image of the state. It mentions the names of cousins Raj Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray as Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday said his party head Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray will attend the rally..'I am very happy,' says Chandrakant Vaidya on Thackeray cousins coming together for cause of Marathi will mark their first appearance together at a political event in nearly two mounting opposition to the introduction of Hindi language in Maharashtra schools from classes 1 to 5, the state cabinet on Sunday decided to withdraw two GRs (government orders) on the implementation of the three-language after the announcement, the Raj Thackeray-led MNS and former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT) said the protest march planned on July 5 against the GRs has been Uddhav Thackeray later said a programme will take place on July 5 to celebrate the 'unity of the Marathi manoos'..The joint invitation has been addressed to "Marathi sisters and brothers", and describes the rally as a celebration of the Marathi pride and unity.."Did we make the government bow down? Yes! This celebration will be yours and we were merely fighting on behalf of you," says the message on the rally will begin at 10 am on July 5 at the NSCI Dome in Worli, it sharing of stage by Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray will be a significant and is expected to be a show of strength and regional pride by the cousins, amid speculation about their parties joining hands ahead of the coming civic polls in the for the event are in full swing, with senior leaders from both parties involved in the the Shiv Sena (UBT), Sanjay Raut, Anil Parab and Varun Sardesai have been tasked with organising the event, while the MNS has entrusted the responsibility to its leaders Bala Nandgaonkar, Abhijit Panse, Sandeep Deshpande and Nitin Sardesai.
