• AN INTRODUCTION TO

• BHARTIYA NAGRIK SURAKSHA SANHITA 2023

• BY ASSISTANT PROF.S.S.CHATE
• SHAHAJI LAW COLLEGE
• KOLHAPUR
 THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF JUSTICE
SYSTEMS
• CIVIL JUSTICE SYSTEM
• end outcome -- compensation , restitution ,
• CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM
• end outcome -- -- punishment
• substantive law -- confers rights -- if you don't
follow -- it will be punishable - any act or
omission prohibited by law and made
punishable by law
 What will be the situation if only
substantive laws existed ?
• Theft occurred , what is the remedy ?
• Substantive laws only speak about offence or crime
• What is the further course ?
• So we need procedural laws for the implementation of
substantive laws …
• Approach police station , give complaint , police will conduct
investigation , arrest the culprit , collect evidence , produce him
before the court , court will conduct trial , and finally give him
punishment
• All these procedures are laid down in BNSS ..
• So procedural laws are very important without which
substantive laws can not be enforced
 Nullum crimen sine lege ,
Nulla poena sine lege
• Nullum crimen sine lege is Latin maxim for "no
crime without law." The phrase reflects the
principle in criminal law and international criminal
law that a person cannot or should not face
criminal punishment except for an act that was
criminalized by law before they performed the
act.
• which simply means that except in accordance
with the defined predetermined law, there can be
no crime or punishment.
 Development of substantive laws can be
studied under three parts
• Ancient time
• Medieval time
• British period
• Ancient time :
• criminal justice system is not alien to India
• substantive law is creation of old Hindu law
• origin of substantive law may be attributed to manusmriti – in
which offences were enumerated in the form of substantive law
forms
• yajanyawalky smriti , narad smriti
• -- procedures have been laid down to enforce sustentative laws as
provided in manusmrit
 Medieval time
• Medieval time : can be attributed to mughal
era
• The king was fountain head of justice
• He was having a status of god
• Procedure followed was as per shariyat
• Muslim law emanates from holy Koran
• Islam is basically based on justice
 History and development of crpc in British era

• British came to India through 1600 charter as east India company

• Regulating act came in to force in 1773 – that is the first act of India
• Calcutta Bombay madras were made presidency towns guided by
common law
• Separate procedure was followed in these area other than mofussil
area or provinces or princely towns
• First step towards consolidation took place in 1852 through supreme
court criminal procedures act 1852
• 1861 the high courts act was passed and then high courts were
established in Calcutta Bombay madras by queens charter and they
were given letters patent
• Now SC was changed to HC so supreme court criminal procedures
act 1852 was replaced by high court criminal procedures act 1865
History and development of crpc in British
era
• For provinces or princely towns British regime made one
homogeneous law criminal procedure act 1861 (general crpc)
• Amendment was made in 1872
• Two separate crpc were in force one for presidency towns and
other for mofussil area
• Now in 1882 British made one pan-India law for entire India ,
applicable to both presidency & provinces (first crpc)
• Further amendments were made and 1898 crpc was enacted
• This code was the basis of 1973 crpc which we are using now
Overview of The Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha
sanhita 2023
• The Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha sanhita 2023
• ACT NO. 46 OF 2023
• Enactment date 25/12/2023 (राष्ट्रपतींची
मान्यता)
• Came in to force on 1 st JULY 2024
• The Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha sanhita 2023 Has
• 38 chapters
• 533 sections
• 2 schedules
 2 schedules

• These parts are very important as far as

criminal practice is concerned
• Schedule talks about classification of offences
• Schedule I divided in to two parts
• Part one deals with offences under the
bhartiya nyay sanhita (IPC)
• Part II deals with classification of offences
against other laws
• Part one vertically divided in to 6 columns
• First column deals with section
• Second offence explained
• Third weather cognizable or non cognizable
• Fourth weather bailable or non bailable
• Fifth by what court triable
 Essential objects of The Bhartiya Nagrik
Suraksha sanhita 2023
• Essential object of criminal law is to protect
society against criminals and law breakers for
this law holds that threats of punishment to
prospective law breakers and provide mechanism
of fair trial also to punish the culprits
• So criminal law in its wider sense consists of both
the substantive criminal law and the procedural
law. It is an act to consolidate and amend law
relating to criminal procedure
 To provide new criminal procedural law and
 To provide assessable and speedy justice to all persons of the country
having considered the new problems circumstances , and new
challenges of the country of the present times
 WHAT SPEEDY TRIAL PRESCRIBED BY BNSS ?
 charge sheet within maximum. period  60/90
 magistrate to take cognizance within 14 days
 if committal proceedings to be completed within 90 days extendable up
to 180 DAYS
 trial to be completed at earliest on day today basis
 judgment to be delivered within 45 DAYS S.258
 judgment and punishment gap should not be more than 7 days
 Not more than 2 adjournments in criminal trials (S.246 BNSS)
 It’s a procedural law
• BNSS is a procedural adjective law
• Trials to be conducted on the basis of substantive laws in
force like IPC and special & local laws like POCSO , DV ACT,
PREVENTION OF CURRUPTION ACT 1988
• Basic principle must be followed that accused to be
innocent until the guilt is proved – Traces found in
adversarial justice system – two types – inquisitorial and
adversarial justice system.
• The Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha sanhita 2023 provides
mechanism in which manner the criminal trials to be
conducted by judiciary and the
 Three components of BNSS

• INVESTIGATION: by police
• INQUIRY : by magistrate
• TRIAL : by magistrate
 [s 1] Short title, extent and commencement.—

• 1. (1) This Act may be called the Bharatiya Nagarik

Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
• (2) The provisions of this Sanhita, other than those
relating to Chapters IX, XI and XII thereof, shall not apply
—
• (a) to the State of Nagaland;
• (b) to the tribal areas,
• but the concerned State Government may, by
notification, apply such provisions or any of them to the
whole or part of the State of Nagaland or such tribal
areas, as the case may be, with such supplemental,
incidental or consequential modifications, as may be
specified in the notification..
• Explanation.—In this section, "tribal areas" means
the territories which immediately before the 21st
day of January, 1972, were included in the tribal
areas of Assam, as referred to in paragraph 20 of
the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution, other than
those within the local limits of the municipality of
Shillong.
• (3) It shall come into force on such date as the
Central Government may, by notification in the
Official Gazette, appoint.
 REASON WHY IT IS NOT APPLICABLE TO
NAGALAND & TRIBAL AREAS
• Article 371A of the Constitution mainly states
that no act of Parliament would apply to the
state of Nagaland in a matter relating to
religious or social practices of Nagas, Naga
customary law, and procedure, administration
of civil or criminal justice involving decisions
according to Naga customary law and
ownership ...
• Definitions from S.2 (1)(a) to (z) are given in
BNSS
• We will see important once as follows …
 Definitions given in S.2

• S.2(1)(a) "audio-video electronic means"

*shall include use of any communication
device for the *purposes of video
conferencing, recording of processes of
identification, search and seizure or
evidence, transmission of electronic
communication and *for such other purposes
and by such other means as the State
Government may, by rules provide;
• S.2(1)(b) "bail" *means *release of a person
*accused of or *suspected of commission of an
offence *from the custody of law *upon certain
conditions imposed by an officer or Court *on
execution *by such person *of a bond or a *bail
bond
• S.2(1)(d) "bail bond" *means *an undertaking *for
release with surety;
• S.2(1)(e) "bond" means *a personal bond or *an
undertaking for release without surety;
 SECTION 2 Definitions.—
• S.2 (1)(Q) "offence" means *any *act or *omission
*made punishable by any law *for the time being in
force *and includes any act in respect of which a
complaint may be made under section 20 of the
Cattle-trespass Act, 1871 (1 of 1871)
• The term "offence" is more elaborately defined in
section 2(24) of the BNS 2023.
• An offence would always mean an act of *omission
or *commission which would be punishable under
any law for the time being in force
 [s 2] Definitions.—

• In this Code, unless the context otherwise requires,—

• S.2 (1)(c) "bailable offence" means *an offence which is
shown as bailable in the First Schedule, or *which is made
bailable by any other law for the time being in force;
• and "non-bailable offence" means any other offence;
• S.2 (1)(f) "charge" includes any head of charge when the
charge contains more heads than one;
• S.2 (1)(g) "cognizable offence" means an offence for which,
and "cognizable case" means a case in which, a *police officer
may, *in accordance with the First Schedule or *under any
other law for the time being in force, *arrest without
warrant;
• S.2 (1)(t) "police report" means *a report
forwarded by a police officer to a Magistrate
under sub-section (3) of section 193;
• S.2 (1)(u) "police station" means *any post or
place *declared generally or specially *by the
State Government, *to be a police station, and
*includes any local area specified by the State
Government in this behalf;
 "complaint" means
• S.2 (1)(h) "complaint" means * any allegation *made
orally or in writing *to a Magistrate, *with a view to
his taking action under this Code, *that some person,
*whether known or unknown, *has committed an
offence, *but does not include a police report.
• Explanation.— A report made by a police officer in a
case which discloses, after investigation, the
commission of a non-cognizable offence shall be
deemed to be a complaint; and the police officer by
whom such report is made shall be deemed to be the
complainant;
what is complaint in a criminal case
• A complaint in a criminal case is what a plaint is in a civil case. It is
one of the modes in which a Magistrate can take cognizance of an
offence (section 210).
• The requisites of a complaint are:
• (1) an oral or a written allegation;
• (2) that some person known or unknown has committed an offence;
• (3) it must be made to a Magistrate. and
• (4) it must be made with the object that he should take action.
• No form is prescribed which the complaint may take. The word has a
wide meaning.. There is no particular format of a complaint. A
petition addressed to a Magistrate, containing an allegation that an
offence has been committed and ending with a prayer that the
culprit be suitably dealt with, is a complaint.
 "inquiry" "investigation" means
• S.2 (1)(k) "inquiry" means every inquiry, other than a
trial, conducted under this Code by a Magistrate or
Court;
• S.2 (1)(L) "investigation" includes all the proceedings
under this Code for the collection of evidence
conducted by a police officer or by any person (other
than a Magistrate) who is authorized by a Magistrate in
this behalf;
• Investigation and inquiry.—
• In criminal matters, inquiry is different from a trial.
Inquiry stops when trial begins
• Collection of evidence.—
• The definition of the term is not exhaustive. An
"investigation" means search for material and facts
in order to find out whether or not an offence has
been committed.
• It does not matter whether it is made by a police
officer or a custom officer or any other officer
authorized to investigate into the matter of an
offence committed under a law other than the IPC
• S.2 (1)(M) "judicial proceeding“ * includes *any
proceeding *in the course of which *evidence is or may
be legally taken on oath;
• The term "judicial proceeding" includes any proceedings
in the course of which evidence is or may be legally
taken on oath .. It includes "inquiry" and "trial" but not
investigation. It is also explained in section 213 and
referred to in sections 228 and 267 of the IPC.
• S.2 (1)(V) "Public Prosecutor“ * means any person
appointed under section 18 and includes any person
acting under the directions of a Public Prosecutor;
• S.2 (1)(z) "warrant-case" *means *a case relating to
an offence *punishable with death, imprisonment for
life or imprisonment for a term exceeding two years;
• S.2 (1)(x) "summons-case" means *a case relating to
an offence, *and not being a warrant case
• The division of cases into summons and warrant
cases is based on the quantum of punishment which
can be awarded. Those cases which are punishable
with imprisonment for two years and under are
summons cases, and the rest are all warrant cases
• S.2 (1)(n) "local jurisdiction", *in relation to a
Court or Magistrate,* means *the local area
within which the Court or Magistrate may
exercise all or any of its or his powers under
this Sanhita and *such local area may
comprise the whole of the State, or *any part
of the State, as the State Government may, by
notification, specify;
 LASTLY S.2 (2)
• S.2 (2) *Words and expressions used *herein
and *not defined but defined in the
Information Technology Act, 2000 and the
*Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 shall have the
meanings respectively assigned to them in
that Act and Sanhita.