Following the enactment of three new criminal laws today, the following changes are expected

Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) went into effect at midnight on July 1, requiring over 650 district courts and 16,000 police stations across India to adapt to the new criminal laws.

Union government authorities have claimed that states have the authority to change some articles of the BNSS. The BNSS, which replaces the previous Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), defines processes and circumstances for arrest, bail, and custody, among other things.

The BNS, which supersedes the Indian Penal Code (IPC) of 1860, may soon be revised by the union government to include a section on sexual crimes against men and transgender individuals.

The BSA, which replaces the Indian Evidence Act of 1872, is the third law to be implemented, representing a complete revamping of the country’s criminal justice legal structure.

From now on, cognisable offences will be registered under Section 173 of the BNSS, rather than Section 154 of the CrPC.

However, the IPC and CrPC will continue to operate concurrently with the new legislation because many cases are still ongoing in courts, and offences committed prior to July 1 but reported subsequently must be registered under the IPC.

An essential improvement to the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network Systems (CCTNS) under the new regulations enables for the submission of e-FIRs without having to visit a police station, as well as zero FIRs, which can be filed regardless of the jurisdiction of the crime scene.

The BNSS requires mandatory audio-video recording of search and seizure operations in all criminal cases, including the preparation of a list of seized items and witness signatures, as well as mandatory forensic examinations in cases where the offence carries a seven-year or more prison sentence. These recordings must be sent to the court electronically “without delay.”

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs is also experimenting with eSakshya, a mobile app that helps police capture crime scenes and search and seizure operations and then uploads the files to a cloud-based platform.

Various states have created their own systems based on their capabilities.

For example, the Delhi Police has developed a ‘e-pramaan’ programme to assist investigators in recording crime scenes and generating a hash value along with a certificate under Section 62 of the Bharatiya Sakshya.

The Uttarakhand Police has donated tablets to each police station for audio-video recording, while the Uttar Pradesh Police has set aside a specific budget for police stations to purchase tablets, pen drives, mobile phones, printers, and other hardware to comply with the new law’s requirements.

However, the BNSS gives states until June 2029 to improve their forensic skills.

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