THOOTHUKUDI: Advocates attached to the Thoothukudi bar association staged a demonstration urging the union government to withdraw the newly enacted criminal laws of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) in front of the court premises along the Palayamkottai road on Saturday.
Thoothukudi Bar Association president David Dhanasekar said the court boycott, which began on July 1, will be extended up to July 10. "The new Act should be withdrawn, and the repealed Indian Penal Code (IPC), Criminal Code of Procedure (CrPC), and Indian Evidence Act, 1872, need to be reinstated," he said.
The major contention raised by the advocates was that the new laws were impractical. The definition of criminal behaviour and the quantum of punishment varies. They added that the police get more power than the judiciary as the new act comes into effect.