New criminal laws biggest reform in independent India: Amit Shah

Addressing an event marking one year of the rolling out of the three laws, Shah said, “These laws are going to transform the criminal justice system in the country significantly. I assure all the citizens that it will take a maximum of three years for the full implementation of the new laws. I can also confidently say that anyone can get justice up to the Supreme Court within three years of filing an FIR.”

He said the biggest challenge before the country’s judicial system was ‘when will justice be delivered’, referring to the long pendency of cases. “It was an era of ‘tareekh pe tareekh’ (repeated adjournments). But after the complete implementation of three new laws, if you file an FIR in any corner of the country, you will get justice up to the Supreme Court within three years,” he added.

Shah also expressed confidence that after the new criminal laws are fully implemented, the “conviction rate will be higher than any other country in the world, our judicial system will be the most modern system in the world, and the usage of technology will be the highest in India”.

He said that under the new laws, forensic evidence has been made mandatory for all cases where there is a provision of punishment of seven years.

Shah said that in the coming days, the country’s criminal justice system will enter a new era and this will surely succeed in replacing the sentiment of ‘what’s the use of filing an FIR’ with the confidence that ‘if we file an FIR, justice will be delivered promptly’.