Click here to access the complete analysis of the new criminal laws as enacted.
This brief is a substantive analysis of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023. On August 31, 2023 and October 25, 2023, Project 39A released two substantive research briefs of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Bill, 2023, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) Bill 2023 and the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill (BSB) 2023. The three Bills were proposed as replacement for the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC), the Criminal Procedure Code 1973 (CrPC) and the Indian Evidence Act 1872 (IEA) respectively. The Bills, which had been sent to a Parliamentary Standing Committee (PSC), were withdrawn and reintroduced in Parliament to incorporate some of the PSC’s suggestions. On December 21, 2023, the reintroduced bills were passed in Parliament, received Presidential assent on December 25, 2023 and came into force on July 1, 2024 as BNS, BNSS and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA).
This research brief provides an in-depth analysis of the final enacted versions of all three pieces of legislation.
