Page 20 - NIS English 1-15 July, 2026

Cover Story
2 Years of Nyaya
Sanhita
A New Era of response, the British introduced the IPC in 1860

Judicial and the CrPC a few years later. These laws were
not designed for the welfare of the citizens but to
Accessibility safeguard British rule. Their mindset is evident
in their very law structure: offenses such as
We have broken free from British-era laws enacted in the looting the state treasury, tampering with railway
19th century. Following the 21st century’s most significant tracks, or insulting the British Crown were priori-
reform, India now has its own laws—laws rooted in the tized over heinous crimes like murder or atrocities
core principles of justice, equality, and fairness. In the against women.
true sense, this embodies the spirit of a New India and It was an unfortunate reality that, long after
reflects the principles of the Constitution...
independence, Indian laws continued to revolve
The Objective: Justice, around that same penal code. While amendments
Not Just Punishment were made periodically, the fundamental character
of the laws remained unchanged. The very soul
and focus of these British-era laws were rooted in
n Freedom from 150-year-old
British-era laws. strengthening British rule and protecting a colonial
n Upon full Tough Stance on administration whose primary objective was pun-
implementation, Terrorism and ishment rather than the delivery of justice. Against
justice—from the Organized Crime this backdrop, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi
initial FIR stage up to pledged from the ramparts of the Red Fort to break
the Supreme Court— The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, free from the ‘mentality of slavery,’ the overhaul
will be delivered 2023, introduces stringent of the penal code marked a decisive step in that
within approximately provisions to tackle direction. As the nation moved towards shedding all
three years. organized crime and
terrorism. vestiges of colonial servitude—alongside its grand
n The new laws mandate resolve to become a developed nation during ‘Amrit
specific timeframes for Kaal’—it took a far-reaching initiative in July 2024 by
completing investigations, filing charge-sheets,
framing charges, and delivering judgments. enacting the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The Indian
Penal Code (1860), the Criminal Procedure Code
n Forensic investigation has been made (1898), and the Indian Evidence Act (1872) had orig-
mandatory for all offenses punishable by seven
years or more of imprisonment. inally been passed by the British Parliament. The
Indian Penal Code (1860) has now been replaced by
the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Code of Criminal
Procedure (1898) by the Bharatiya Nagarik Surak-
sha Sanhita, and the Indian Evidence Act (1872) by
the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam. These three new
laws have laid the foundation for a criminal justice
system that is centered on justice rather than
merely on punishment. Now, the concept of ‘Ease
of Justice’ has been realized through processes that
are simple, coherent, transparent, and accountable.
These three new laws embody the true spirit of
Indian justice. In the true sense, decades after inde-
pendence, these three criminal laws have, for the
first time, humanized the justice system. This legal
code strengthens the true democratic principle: “of
the people, by the people, for the people.” Indepen-

18 NEW INDIA SAMACHAR || July 1-15, 2026