Striking a chord with the residents of Chandigarh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said, “Chandigarh aane pe lagta hai apno ke beech aa gaye (When I come to Chandigarh, I feel I am among my own people).”
Modi, who was accompanied by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, was speaking at an event where he dedicated to the nation the successful implementation of the three new criminal laws.
Modi said that the identity of Chandigarh was associated with Goddess Chandi, a form of power which establishes truth and justice. He added that the same philosophy was the basis of the whole format of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.
He said it was after 75 years of Constitution of India that these laws were implemented. “The implementation of BNS is a massive starter for the citizens. It is a solid effort as was envisaged by the Constitution. I was watching the live demo of implementation of these new laws. I would exhort all of you to watch this demo. I congratulate everyone for the implementation of these laws.”
He said these laws were solid documents as a thorough process was undertaken for this. Legal luminaries, police and experts were consulted after January 2000, when suggestions were invited for these laws. Many discussions were held and practicality of all laws were checked. I am thankful to the Supreme Court of India, High Courts of states especially Punjab and Haryana High Court.
I thank all the bar members for making these laws a reality with their suggestions.”
Addressing the gathering, Shah said that the conviction rate will go up with the implementation of the new criminal laws that will then lead to a drop in crimes. The biggest feature of the new criminal laws is that their soul is Indian and their objective is to provide justice, he further said.
He added that Chandigarh has become the country’s first administrative unit to achieve 100 per cent implementation of the three laws. After the implementation of the new laws, justice will be ensured in less time, the conviction rate will be higher and, because of that, the crime rate will drop, Shah said.
Of the FIRs registered under the new criminal laws in Chandigarh, judgment in 9,500 cases have come with the conviction rate being more than 85 per cent against the current rate of 58 per cent, he said.
Referring to the colonial-era laws, Shah said they were framed by the British for the security of their rule rather than the citizens.
The three new laws were drafted by Indians in Parliament to ensure that citizens get justice, the home minister said.
The new laws give primacy to justice over punishment. The objective of the new laws is to ensure justice for citizens, Shah said. After the complete implementation of these laws in three years, India’s criminal justice system will be the world’s most modern, he asserted.
These new laws will prove to be the “biggest reform” in the world, he said.
All five pillars of the criminal justice system — police, prisons, judiciary, prosecution, and forensic science laboratories — have been modernised with the new laws, Shah added.
Meanwhile, no prominent political face except Rajya Sabha MP Satnam Singh Sandhu from Chandigarh was present at the event.
While Chandigarh Mayor Kuldeep Kumar said that he boycotted the event, MP Manish Tewari too was also absent.
Sources said that Tewari is in Delhi and is caught up in his daughter’s wedding.
Kumar said, “We received the invite as neither my name or our MP’s name was there. UT Adviser, Administrator and Sandhu’s names were there but not ours. This is not the sort of respect one gives to the Mayor and MP of the city. So I didn’t attend the event.” Sources added that the event was not managed well as not a single water bottel was given to media persons or students present.
