Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Wednesday stated that India’s new criminal laws (BNS, BNSS, BSA) are largely “cut and paste” versions of the old IPC, CrPC, and Indian Evidence Act, with minimal new additions.
Chidambaram wrote on X that, “The whole exercise was a waste and has only created confusion in the administration of justice among judges, lawyers and the police.” He reiterated points from a dissent note he had submitted to the Parliamentary Standing Committee that examined the bills, asserting that “90-95% of the IPC, 95% of the CrPC and 99% of the Evidence Act, have been cut and pasted in the corresponding new Bill.” He claimed his assertion was not challenged in Parliament or elsewhere.
BJP hits back
However, BJP IT department head Amit Malviya quickly slammed Chidambaram’s criticism. In a post on X, Malviya wrote, “It is truly remarkable how someone who has served as both Finance Minister and Home Minister still doesn’t have a single transformative piece of legislation to his name.”
He further stated, “Your legacy? Being accused of bugging the office of the late Pranab Mukherjee and writing dissent notes as a member of the opposition. That is the sum total of your contribution to Indian governance.”
The comments from Chidambaram comes a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah hailed the new criminal laws as the “biggest reform in independent India.” Addressing an event marking one year since the laws’ rollout, Shah emphasised that the Narendra Modi government framed the new legislation to protect citizens’ rights and ensure no criminal goes unpunished.
He stressed that the online processes under the new laws would make the judicial system more affordable, accessible, simpler, time-bound, and transparent, promising justice up to the Supreme Court within three years of an FIR being filed.
(With PTI Inputs)