BNS switch comes with caution about sections & interpretations

Pune: The sense of circumspection was palpable among the staff in police stations across Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad on Day 1 of the new criminal laws taking effect.
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) came into force on Monday replacing the colonial-era Indian Penal Code (IPC), Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and the Indian Evidence Act, respectively.

All FIRs will be registered under the BNS provisions, including those for crimes before July 1 but reported to the police after July 1.
Caution was the word in the pace of work vis-à-vis registration of cases. It slowed down the process as the police concentrated more on the renumbered sections, their correct interpretation and when in doubt, consulting their seniors.
Vaishali Mane, Superintendent of Police (Technical), state CID, told TOI, “The new online system in accordance with the new criminal law was implemented across all 1,200-odd police stations and it functioned smoothly. No technical glitches were reported in the transition from the old system to the new system. We have already started taking feedback from the district police units and the police commissionerates. We will address all their queries online or in person.”
All online processes under the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) for registration of FIRs etc., were shut down for nearly half-an-hour before Sunday midnight to facilitate an upgrade and transition to the BNS driven system that went operational around half-past midnight.
Areas of concern over panchnama filming
Lack of clarity over use of equipment and its evidentiary value like filming of a panchnama (spot inspection) process, mandatory under the BNSS, was an area of concern.
“We have no choice but to continue with whatever we have to videograph panchnamas till we get a clear idea from the decision-makers. The question we face is whether evidence recorded on personal cellphones would be admissible and whether we must deposit our cellphones with courts as evidence till the trial is over,” an officer, who did not wish to be named, said when TOI visited the Hinjewadi police station.
Inspector (crime) Mansingh Patil at Kondhwa police station said, “Section 23 of the BSA entails a four-minute videography of the panchnama of the crime scene to be uploaded on the CCTNS. Plans are afoot to introduce an application for policemen to conduct such videography and upload it on CCTNS.”
Staff put in efforts to get the laws right
Patil added that despite training and support material provided to the staff, getting used to the new laws will take some time.
“We must be extra careful to see that we understand and correctly apply the renumbered sections to the matters reaching us,” he said.
At Shivajinagar police station, a woman constable was spotted reading the BNS provisions on a computer screen.
“We are reading the sections which will henceforth be in regular use. But we can learn more at the practical application stage when a person walks in to lodge a complaint. Since morning, no one has turned up with a complaint,” she said.
Comparative tables of IPC and BNS help decode
The Station House Officer’s (SHO) room at the police station was abuzz with discussions on the new criminal laws. Police were equipped with comparative tables of IPC and BNS with printouts and on their cellphones.
At Vishrambaug police station, senior inspector Deepali Bhujbal said, “We have displayed the tables of the BNS sections in the SHO's room where FIRs are taken down in front of the complainants.” TOI spoke to a few constables in the SHO room. One of them, showing the BNS table, said, “We thought that there would be cases of thefts of wallets or cellphones during the palkhi procession. We wanted to register these cases under the BNS laws but no one has turned up so far.”
Market Yard police’s senior inspector Rahul Khilare said the Pune police have circulated a comparative chart of old and new laws’ sections and formats of notices and arrest to all police stations. Law books in English and Marathi have also been sent.
Senior inspector Swapnila Shinde from Deccan Gymkhana police station said they have to study the three laws and consult senior officers and public prosecutors.