Polity

NEEDED REFORMS TO SPECIAL AND LOCAL LAWS

20 Oct 2023 7 mins Download PDF

Why in the News?

The bills proposing reforms criminal laws such as Indian Penal Code (IPC), Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and Indian Evidence Act (IEA) have been tabled in the Parliament.

But the proposed bills do not suggest any reforms in critical offences and procedures that are encompassed within the Special and Local Laws (SLLs).

Special and Local Laws (SLLs):

Nearly, 39.9% of all cognisable offences registered in 2021 were under SLLs.
As per the Crime in India Statistics of 2021, of the total 61 lakh cognisable offences registered, 24.3 lakh offences were registered under SLLs alone.

What Actually are SLLs?

Special and local laws refer to laws that are applicable only to certain regions or sections of society, as opposed to general laws that apply universally.

Some key features of special and local laws:

They are enacted to address specific issues or needs of a particular region, community, industry, etc.
They supplement the general legal framework by providing exceptions, additional provisions or special treatment for select groups.
They are limited in their scope and application compared to nationwide laws of general nature.
Administration and enforcement of special laws involves designated authorities and procedures.
They take precedence over general laws in case of conflicts on matters where the special laws apply.
Some examples of special and local laws in India include:
Laws pertaining to Scheduled Tribes like Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996
Laws related to special status states like Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019
Laws concerning special economic zones like Special Economic Zones Act, 2005
Industry-specific laws like the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 for banking companies
Region-specific laws like the Gujarat Control of Terrorism and Organised Crime Act, 2015
Laws applicable to protected religious places like Amarnath Temple Act, 2000
Laws enacted by State Legislatures on state-specific matters

Special and local laws enable customized provisions for unique contexts and needs. However, they should align with constitutional principles and not promote discrimination.

Need for reform in SLLs:

Use of deficient, ambiguous and vague definitions of offences and terms in the acts.
1. For example, SLLs such as the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA) and the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act, 1999 (MCOCA) have terms such as ‘terrorist act’, ‘unlawful activity’, ‘organised crime’, ‘organised crime syndicate’ etc., which suffer from such issues.
2. The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 suffers from the issue of applicability to consensual sexual activities between minors.
3. The Supreme Court in the case of P. Mohanraj versus M/s Shah Brothers Ispat Ltd. (2021), has referred to Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 fall squarely within the domain of civil wrongs but present under criminal provisions of the text.
4. The universally accepted due process values are being diluted through SLLs. Examples include,
  1. powers of search and seizure under Section 43A of the UAPA
  2. admissibility of confessions recorded by police officers under Section 18 of the MCOCA
  3. stringent bail provisions provided for under

SLLs to be included in the ambit of IPC, CrPC:

The idea of complete codification of all criminal laws inspired by Bentham’s idea of a “Pannomion”, an all-comprehensive collection of rules codified in a single place, was conceived in IPC and CrPC, to contain within its pages all criminal laws of the time.
It was decided to suitably amend it in situations requiring the creation of new offences, clarification of existing offences, and removal of inconsistencies.
The symbolic of the need to reform several aspects of our criminal laws was revealed in challenges to
1. homosexuality under Section 377 in Navtej Johar versus Union of India (2018)
2. sedition under Section 124A in S.G. Vombatkere versus Union of India (2022).
However, successive governments place increasing reliance on the SLLs, it becomes imperative to imbibe SLLS in the IPC as well as the CrPC.
1. All SLLs which criminalise conduct should be placed as separate chapters within the larger structure of the penal code.
2. All SLLs which create a separate procedure for reporting of offences, arrest, investigation, prosecution, trial, evidence and bail should be included as separate procedures within the CrPC or as exceptions to the general provisions provided therein.