MHA officials likely to make presentation to parliamentary panel on new criminal bills

The bills will replace the Indian Penal Code, 1860, Criminal Procedure Act, 1898, and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, respectively

New Delhi: Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla and senior officers of the Ministry of Home Affairs are likely to make a presentation to a parliamentary panel this week on the three bills which will replace the IPC, CrPC and the Evidence Act, officials said.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah had introduced the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, and Bharatiya Sakshya, 2023 in the Lok Sabha on August 11.

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The bills will replace the Indian Penal Code, 1860, Criminal Procedure Act, 1898, and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, respectively.

As suggested by the home minister, the bills were referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs, headed by BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh Brij Lal.

“The home secretary and other senior officers of the MHA are likely to give a presentation to the parliamentary panel this week,” an official privy to the development said.

The MHA team will give the reasons behind bringing the three bills, their necessities and how they are relevant to the changing needs of society, the officials said.

The proposed laws have tried to define some of the current social realities and crimes and provide a mechanism to effectively deal with such criminals and such issues.

Shah, while suggesting referring the bills to the parliamentary panel, requested the MPs to carefully examine them.

The home minister himself had attended more than 150 meetings with various stakeholders during the process of drafting the three bills, officials said.

The panel has three months to examine the bills and submit a report to Parliament in the Winter session.

Members of the panel include Biplab Kumar Deb, Digvijaya Singh, Neeraj Shekhar, Kakoli Ghosh Dostidar, Dayanidhi Maran, V D Ram and Ravneet Singh among others.