SV Raju speaks at the 5th Ram Jethmalani Memorial Lecture on the revision of Indian penal law

The Ram Jethmalani Memorial Lecture Series was held for the fifth time, honouring one of India's most eminent legal scholars. This year's focus was on India's latest penal legislation, with an in-depth examination of the reasons behind the enactment of three new penal laws.

The Ram Jethmalani Memorial Lecture Series was held for the fifth time, honouring one of India's most eminent legal scholars. This year's focus was on India's latest penal legislation, with an in-depth examination of the reasons behind the enactment of three new penal laws.

The event brought together the country's leading legal experts to critically examine the legal intent and effectiveness of these laws, particularly with regard to the treatment of first-time offenders. The panel provided valuable insights into the rationale behind the new legislation and assessed the extent to which these laws achieved their stated objectives, promising a comprehensive analysis of the evolving criminal justice landscape in India.

The first speaker to speak on this subject was the Deputy Attorney General of India, Mr. Suryaprakash V. Raju, a very well-known personality in the Supreme Court of India, who has also represented the Union Government in many important cases.

Tribute to Ram Jethmalani

At the beginning of the discussion, he first spoke about Ram Jethmalani and his dedicated career as a lawyer and said, “Ram Jethmalani was by far the best lawyer in criminal law. He is also a very good lawyer in constitutional law, but in criminal law, no one can match him.”

Discussion about new penal laws

He then spoke about the subject of discussion and the three laws related to it, saying: “You know that after about five, seven or ten decades, it is always necessary to change the laws because so much has changed, the values ​​have changed and the needs have changed. So the laws that were in place earlier need to be revised and that is exactly what these three laws have done.”

Examination of Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Adhiniyam

Continuing the discussion, he spoke about the Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Adhiniyam, formerly known as CrPC, and said, “This Act needed to be revised in some but not all aspects. The revision was particularly in terms of the need for justice to be done in a timely manner.” He added, “Delay in justice is denial of justice and so this Act tries to deal with the aspect of denial of justice due to delay.”

Sanctions and reduction of delays

He also spoke about another aspect that this law takes into account, namely sanctions, and said, “Sanctions also used to take a lot of time earlier. Sanctions, whether under the PC Act or Section 197 of the IPC, always took time and often chargesheets were filed without sanctions, leading to numerous litigations. But now the law provides that if one does not oppose a sanction within 120 days, it is deemed to be approved and this is another way to reduce the delays in legal proceedings.”

Introduction of community service as punishment

Towards the end, he also spoke about community service as a punishment, and continued: “Community service as a punishment is something new. There are cases where courts have imposed community service as a punishment, but it was not a recognized form. Constitutional courts have done this, but judges should not have done this. Therefore, it is now legally recognized that community service has been performed for minor offenses. In the US and the UK, this provision already exists, so this is a good punishment that takes into account modern legal requirements.”

In conclusion, the Ram Jethmalani Memorial Lecture Series offered a thorough examination of India's evolving criminal justice system. Insightful discussions led by leading legal experts, including Deputy Attorney General Suryaprakash V. Raju, highlighted the important innovations in criminal law aimed at improving the administration of justice and preventing delay. The introduction of community service as an accepted method of punishment represents a progressive step in legal reform. This comprehensive analysis underscores the ongoing efforts to modernize India's criminal justice system.

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