Opposition MPs call for postponing meeting on replacing three criminal laws, raise concerns about 'rushed adoption'

New Delhi: Senior MPs P Chidambaram and Derek O’Brien have urged postponement of the October 27 meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs to adopt reports on Bills replacing the IPC, CrPC and Evidence Acts, reasoning that five days are inadequate to study the three drafts.

Eleven MPs from the Congress, Trinamool Congress, DMK and JD(U) are preparing to submit dissent notes on the reports if committee chairperson Brijlal, a BJP MP and former Director General of Police in Uttar Pradesh, goes ahead with the meeting.

The panel had last Friday intimated MPs about the meeting for adopting the reports on The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 and The Bharatiya Sakshya Bill 2023, which are replacing the three laws. Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar referred the Bills to the panel on August 18.

In separate letters, Congress MP Chidambaram and Trinamool Congress’ O’Brien warned against replacing the codes in a rush and highlighted the “negative implications” of doing so. Both the MPs said in their letters to Brijlal that the draft reports were sent only on October 21 at 8:30 PM.

O’Brien highlighted the “alarming lack of consultation with stakeholders and rush” and warned that a “hasty adoption” of laws that are going to last over 100 years would be “premature and counterproductive”. He said, “this consultative process needs us to rise above narrow partisan interests or short term electoral stunts.”

Chidambaram said, “You will kindly appreciate that it will not be possible to read the three reports, understand the various issues that were discussed and now reported upon, form our views on the issues and contribute meaningfully to the discussions on the reports before they are adopted within a space of five days”.

“If we intend to replace the three laws, we must do justice to the subjects. I am of the clear view that justice cannot be done to the subjects if we are allowed only five days -- and in the Dussehra holiday period -- to read, understand and form our views on the draft reports on the three Bills,” the former Finance Minister said in his letter on Sunday.

Chidambaram also did “not see the need to rush things” before October-end as the next session of Parliament is “at least four weeks away, maybe more”. Requesting a postponement of the meeting to a “suitable date in the first week of November”, he said there is enough time to deliberate on the drafts "calmly and methodically" and submit the final report.

Urging the chairperson not to rush through the reports, O’Brien said they would be doing a big disservice to a large section of the population, especially those who are marginalised or economically challenged.

In his letter on Monday, he also referred to the “multiple commitments” of MPs and said a number of programmes are being lined up in West Bengal, which he represents.

O’Brien said UNESCO has included Durga Puja in its 'Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity List' and a big carnival is being organised on Friday while Laxmi Puja falls the next day. “Why do you want all MPs from Bengal to miss the same to be present before the Home Affairs committee meeting?” he asked.

Sources said Opposition MPs found the Bills “95 per cent copy-paste” of the existing ones and there was actually “no need” for the new Bills. They feel the consultative process was not adequate enough as several experts were not called.

“These bills, tom-tomed as one which erase colonial clauses, are actually more colonial than earlier. Incorporating provisions of UAPA and NSA have made them more ruthless,” a senior MP, who is a member of the committee, said.

However, the sources added that opposition MPs also saw some positives, for instance the introduction of community service, in the proposed bills.