BPR&D to review IPC, CrPC and other laws : Govt

The Bureau of Police Research and Development, the national police think tank, has been asked to undertake a comprehensive review of Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), Indian Evidence Act and other special laws in consultations with different stakeholders, the government said on Wednesday.

The IPC was enacted in 1860, the Indian Evidence Act in 1872 and the CrPC in 1973.

"The Bureau of Police Research and Development has been asked on September 16, 2019 to undertake a comprehensive review of the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure, Indian Evidence Act and other special Acts in consultations with various stakeholders including the states/union territories," minister of state for home affairs G Kishan Reddy said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha.

The state governments and union territory administrations were asked to give suggestions in this regard keeping in view the current scenario and the vision of new India, with an aim to strengthen law and order and also focusing on simplifying legal procedures so that ease of living is ensured for the common man, Reddy said.

"So far three states have given their comments/responses namely Jammu & Kashmir (now union territory of Jammu & Kashmir and union territory of Ladakh), Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh," he said.

Addressing an event here, Union home minister Amit Shah had in August said he had asked the BPR&D to initiate a countrywide "consultative process" for effecting changes in the CrPC and the IPC.

"All suggestions should be documented and recommendations should be sent to the ministry. There has been no change for a long time in CrPC and IPC and we should go forward on this," he had said.

The BPR&D, under the home ministry, is tasked with preparing and suggesting better working policies and technology solutions for the police forces and act as a national think tank on policing.