VIJAYAWADA: The State Cabinet on Wednesday approved the Andhra Pradesh Criminal Law (Amendment) 2019 Bill, christened ‘AP Disha Act’ and the Andhra Pradesh Special Court for Specified Offences against Women and Children, a radical legislation under which those convicted in rape cases could be hanged, and if conclusive evidence is available, the judgement must be delivered within 21 days.
In tune with the announcement made by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to bring in a legislation to act tough against the perpetrators of crimes against women and children, the Cabinet met in the Secretariat and gave its nod to the Bill.
The government intends to amend the Indian Penal Code Section 354 and incorporate a new Section 354 (e) to bring social media within its ambit to make it a crime to post anything that may be construed as an insult to women. Such a crime will invite two-year jail sentence. If the convict repeats the crime, he could be sentenced to four years rigorous imprisonment. The perpetrators of sexual offences against minors will be punished under the IPC Section 354 (F). As per the severity of the crime, punishment will be given from 10 to 14 years.
At present, the punishment for crimes under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act is three to five years imprisonment.
The bill is likely to be tabled in the Assembly on Thursday. According to sources, the new legislation is intended to expedite cases to ensure speedy justice to women victims and act as an effective deterrent.
As per the provisions of the Bill, the investigation into crimes against women should be completed within a week and the trial must be completed within two weeks in fast track courts.It facilitates conviction within three weeks if the accused are caught red handed with evidence establishing their guilt beyond any reasonable doubt.
Official sources told TNIE that laws at present mandate completion of investigation in four months and the proposed Bill brings it down to 21 days. It also stipulates that special courts must be set up in each district to try crimes against women such as acid attacks, rape, gangrape and sexual harassment among others.However, some in the legal fraternity are of the view that the State government’s decision to complete the investigation, proceedings and judgement in 21 days may be impracticable.
Speaking to TNIE, advocate P Raviteja said, “In any crime, it is impossible to complete the entire investigation and proceedings within 21 days. There are certain stages of investigation and proceedings which consume a lot of time and cannot be omitted. Under the CrPC, from filing FIR to the judgement, there are 9-10 stages of procedure for all the cases. If the entire process has to be completed within 21 days, there should be an amendment to the CrPC, which is not in the hands of the State government. Skipping steps will not be possible and moreover, judgements cannot be forced based on emotions.”
According to Section 167 (2) of the CrPC, any investigation pertaining to an offence punishable with death, imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term of not less than 10 years has to be completed in 90 days. In any other offence, it has to be completed in 60 days. If the investigation is not completed within the stipulated period, the accused can apply for bail.
The stages of a criminal case include complaint, investigation, bail, charge-sheet, discharge or framing of charges, evidence, defence evidence, statement of accused, arguments and then judgement. The stages of evidence, defence evidence and arguments consume a lot of time.
The government’s decision to amend the Indian Penal Code Section 354 and make a provision for a new Section 354 (e) to bring social media within its ambit and treat it a crime to post anything that may be construed as an insult to women, is most unlikely to be implemented as any crime listing has to be done by the CrPC.
Advocate N Sravan said, “While enacting the Nirbhaya Act, four sub-clauses under the Section 354 of IPC were made. Making amendment to the IPC and introduction of the sub-section 354 (e) lie in the hands of the Centre. If the State government wants to punish those harassing/insulting women on social media platforms, the charges have to be considered by the CrPC and an amendment has to be made in Parliament.”
Sec 354 (e) proposed Government intends to amend the IPC Sec 354 and incorporate a new Sec 354 (e) to bring social media within its ambit to make it a crime to post anything that may be construed as an insult to women