New Delhi, July 12 (FN Bureau) The All India Bar Association (AIBA), a lawyers’ body, on Friday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to increase the strength of police personnel, judicial officers, public prosecutors, managers for courts, Forensic Science Laboratories (FSL) and set up evening courts for the smooth implementation of the New Criminal Laws. In his letter, Dr Adish Aggarwala, Chairman of the All India Bar Association and outgoing President of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), urged the Prime Minister that certain pivotal steps are necessary to ensure that the remarkable vision to ensure the timely completion of trials, swift registration of FIRs, and expedient completion of investigation, through the three new criminal laws reaches fruition effectively.
Aggarwala said that under the new criminal laws, which came into force on July 1, an FIR has to be recorded within three days of complaints being submitted through electronic communication, during the initial phase of criminal cases. The competent court has to now frame charges within sixty days from the first hearing on the charge. A novel inclusion in the new criminal laws is the introduction of trial in absentia against proclaimed offenders after ninety days from charge framing, expediting proceedings and ensuring timely delivery of justice to victims and society-at-large, Aggarwala contended. The criminal courts have now been mandated to pronounce judgments within 45. Further, Aggarwala said that the courts have to upload the judgment within seven days from the date of pronouncement, on their respective portals, improving access to justice for all.
These reforms have sparked an undercurrent of hope among the masses that finally the proverbial era of “getting dates one after another, but not justice” may end. said Dr Adish Aggarwala, who has also served as Additional Advocate General of Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab and Haryana. Aggarwala lauded the Prime Minister and said, “Presently the citizenry of our great democracy, has by and large received the reforms positively, and they see you as a beacon of hope, who put an end to colonial-era relics by enacting the three new laws. Lauding the PM’s initiative to bring about reforms, Aggarwala said, no one but a leader of your courage and strength could have ensured smooth passage of the enactment of the new laws at the risk of unsettling the status quo that plagues our snail-paced judicial and police systems.” The government should, in coordination with the various High Courts and state governments, gradually set up evening courts in each district headquarters, Dr Aggarwala suggested.