Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir police on Monday registered several FIRs under the newly enacted Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), a comprehensive legal code aimed at reforming India's justice system, which took effect on July 1.
Srinagar, Anantnag, and Baramulla police stations were among those that registered First Information Reports (FIRs) under the BNS, marking a significant milestone in the region’s legal enforcement framework.
An official reported that an FIR, numbered 22/2024, was filed at the Chanapora police station in Srinagar under sections 135-1(b) and 303(2) of the new law. Similarly, an FIR numbered 143/2024 was registered at Police Station Bijbehara in Anantnag under sections 125(a) and 281 of the BNS. Another case was filed at Police Station Kreeri in Baramulla under the new criminal provisions.
Starting July 1, Jammu and Kashmir implemented three significant criminal laws to modernise the region’s legal framework and improve the efficiency of the judicial process. Authorities are hopeful that the newly enacted BNS will foster a more just and transparent legal environment. To raise awareness about these new laws, a series of seminars were conducted across J&K.
J&K police chief R R Swain said that the BNS provides a clear legal mandate to tackle cross-border terrorism. "In J&K's context, the BNS provides a helpful definition of terrorism as it categorically and explicitly provides a legal mandate to tackle terrorism emanating from beyond international borders," he said.
The BNS, along with the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA), are India's new criminal laws passed by Parliament in December 2023. These laws replace the Indian Penal Code (IPC) of 1860, the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) of 1973, and the Indian Evidence Act of 1872, respectively.