"Will Miss IPC Section 420": BJP MP On New Criminal Code Bills

Senior advocate and nominated MP Mahesh Jethmalani told the Rajya Sabha on Thursday that he will miss some parts of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), especially section 420 that is imprinted in everyone's mind and became so popular that even a Hindi film titled "Shree 420" was made in the 1950s.

Participating in a debate on three criminal amendment bills in the Upper House of Parliament, Mr Jethmalani said, "I have been in (the legal) practice for 42 years. Although the old must give way to the new, there are some parts of it we will miss, sir. Section 420 is imprinted in our minds." 

"It became part of Bollywood and there was a movie with Raj Kapoor called 'Shree 420'. Sometimes, we were admonished by our parents, who said 'charsaubeesi maat karo'. We will miss that. This bill must ring in changes for the new generation. It has and I welcome it," he added.

According to section 420 of the IPC, if someone cheats and deceives another person to give property or alter valuable documents, he can be punished with imprisonment for up to seven years and fine.

The three bills passed by the Lok Sabha and debated upon in the Rajya Sabha are -- the Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita Bill (BNSS) that will replace the IPC, 1860; the Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Bill (BSS) that will replace the Indian Evidence Act, 1872; and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita Bill (BNSS) that will replace the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898.

Stressing that these bills have sweeping changes, Mr Jethmalani said, "The most substantial changes are in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill. The two principles that are reflected there -- women power and nationalism." 

He further said the real change from the colonial era is reflected in how "sedition" has been re-worded. The old section 124A of the IPC defined sedition as an act that created disaffection against the lawfully-elected government of the day.

"The British were never lawfully elected. To save themselves from fiery speeches and strong articles in the media as it then existed, section 124A was enacted. It was to save the colonial regime. Today, section 124A is still necessary as there is a huge colonial mentality in India," Mr Jethmalani said.

Section 124A is still required because people, by spoken and written words, try to undermine the country, he said while welcoming the wording of the new provision.

According to the new section, a person may be accused of sedition if he creates disaffection not against the government of the day but against the Indian State. That is the nationalist aspect of the bill, Mr Jethmalani said.

Stressing that the bill also looks at the country's security, he said, "For the first time, we have a general statute that defines terrorism and makes it punishable." 

There is also a bill that defines "organised crime and organised crime syndicates" that continuously indulge in unlawful activities. These gangs undermine the State. Many of the gangs are influenced and financed by other countries, Mr Jethmalani said, adding, "They need to be curbed and eradicated and this bill seeks to do that as well." 

That apart, the senior advocate said there is a separate chapter in the bill on women. For the first time since 1872 and for the first time in independent India, a special chapter has been kept in the penal code that deals with offences against children, he noted.

Previously, the offences against women were scattered. They were to be found in different chapters, Mr Jethmalani said. They were not women-centric. "Under offences against the human body, you would find the offence of rape," he said.

Mr Jethmalani also talked about the offence of gang rape of a minor. "This is a triple evil and it requires the death sentence. Although I am known for advocating the death sentence in the rarest of rare cases, but I welcome the death sentence where there is a gang rape of a minor because it involves a triple evil. I welcome this section also," he said.

Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said on a day like this, he missed the contributions of senior advocates P Chidambaram, Kapil Sibal, Abhishek Singhvi and Vivek Thakur.

"When such a historic development is taking place here, they have not participated. From that perspective, it is a matter of deep concern for me as the chairman. I will continue to secure the decorum of the House and participation of every member," Mr Dhankhar said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)