Despite good intentions, new criminal laws created chaos: Madras HC

Plea against new criminal laws: Madras HC bench said that the renaming of the laws was unnecessary, and it only confused the public

The Madras High Court on Friday criticised the three new criminal laws introduced by the Centre, stating that the names of the laws have caused confusion, despite the possibly good intentions behind them, reported Bar and Bench.

Justices SS Sundar and N Senthil Kumar expressed their concerns, noting that while objections and opinions were solicited from stakeholders and the public before enacting the laws, the process appeared to be a mere formality. "The objective might be good, but it has created chaos. Objections and opinions were called for, but it was only a formality. None of them were implemented," the bench said.

The court's observations came during the hearing of multiple Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petitions challenging the three new criminal laws.

"Normally, at least in principle, if the government wants to make an amendment to even a simple legislation, it is first sent to the Law Commission for its opinion," the court said during the hearing.

The bench also criticised the new names of the criminal laws -- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) -- suggesting that the renaming was unnecessary and only served to confuse the public.

"In the present case, you [Centre] wanted to make some amendments; what was the need to change the names of the laws? It is only to confuse the public," the bench stated.

The petition was filed by RS Bharathi, organising secretary of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). The plea argued that the new criminal laws represent a "concerted design to weaponise the law by criminalising democratic and peaceful acts of expressing dissent and opposition to state policies, systematically dismantling the most fundamental principles of criminal jurisprudence, such as the right to a free and fair trial, and centralising powers of the police to provide impunity and ensure immunity for the police and state officials."

Following a brief hearing, the court announced it would examine the matter in detail, scheduling Bharathi's petitions alongside other related PILs. The Centre has been granted four weeks to file a counter to the petitions.