With the intention of “decriminalizing” a few minor crimes and improving the ease of living and doing business in India, the Union Government tabled the Jan Vishwas Bill, 2022, in Parliament.
On December 22, 2022, Piyush Goyal, the Commerce and Industry Minister, introduced the Jan Vishwas Bill (Amendment of Provisions). Presenting the Bill, Goyal said that for minor crimes people should not be penalized, and there should be a provision for paying fines for minor offenses. The Bill was later sent to a 31-member joint committee of Parliament for scrutiny and analysis. The committee will be required to submit its report in the second part of the Budget session, 2023.
What is in the Bill?
The Bill proposes to amend 183 provisions across 42 Acts overseen by 19 ministries comprising finance, food production and distribution, financial services, agriculture, commerce, environment, road transport and highways, ports, electronics, and Information and Technology. In addition to the decriminalization of minor offenses, the Bill envisions the streamlining of monetary penalties, depending on the seriousness of the offense, boosting trust-based governance. It recommends amendments to the Acts, including The Boilers Act; The Aadhar Act, 2016; the Legal Metrology Act, 2009, 2006; Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940; Public Debt Act, 1944; Pharmacy Act, 1948; Cinematograph Act, 1952; Copyright Act, 1957; Patents Act, 1970; Environment (Protection) Act, 1986; and Motor Vehicles Act, 1988; Trade Marks Act, 1999; Railways Act, 1989; Information Technology Act, 2000; Prevention of Money-laundering Act, 2002; Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006; Legal Metrology Act, 2009; and Factoring Regulation Act, 2011, among others.
Under the Bill, many wrongdoings with an imprisonment tenure in certain Acts have been decriminalized by levying only a fiscal penalty. For instance, under the Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act, of 1937, forging grade label marks is punishable with imprisonment of up to three years and a fine of up to five thousand rupees. The Bill substitutes this with a penalty of eight lakh rupees. Grade label mark shows the quality of an article under the 1937 Act. Under the Information Technology Act, of 2000, revealing personal data in breach of a lawful contract is punishable with imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of up to five lakh rupees, or both. The Bill substitutes this with a penalty of up to 25 lakh rupees. In certain Acts, offenses have been decriminalized by a penalty instead of a fine. For example, under the Patents Act, of 1970, a person selling a falsely represented article as patented in India is subject to a fine of up to one lakh rupees. The Bill substitutes the fine with a penalty, which may be up to ten lakh rupees. In case of a continuing claim, there shall be an additional penalty of one thousand rupees per day. The Bill raises the fines and penalties for various offenses in the specified Acts. Further, these fines and penalties will be increased by 10% of the minimum amount every three years.
According to the Bill, the central government may appoint one or more adjudicating officers for determining penalties. The adjudicating officers may: (i) summon individuals for evidence, and (ii) conduct inquiries into violations of the respected Acts. These Acts include the Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act, 1937, the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, and the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991. The Bill also states the appellate mechanisms for any person aggrieved by the order passed by an adjudicating officer. For instance, in the Environment (Protection) Act, of 1986, appeals may be filed with the National Green Tribunal within 60 days of the order.
Still a long way to go
According to the National Judicial Data Grid, out of the 4.3 crore undecided cases, approximately 3.2 crore cases are about criminal proceedings. According to the National Crime Records Bureau’s Prison Statistics of 2021, a total of 5.54 lakh prisoners were kept in prisons against a capacity of 4.25 lakh.
The Bill either neglects penal provisions or substitutes them with fines in legislations such as the Air Act, Environment Protection Act, Forest Act, Drugs and Cosmetics Act, Cinematograph Act, Patents Act, Trade Marks Act, and Information Technology Act amongst several others. These are largely offenses that are regulatory by nature. On the whole, an analysis of the provisions of the Bill discloses that emphasis has been on the substitution of imprisonment clauses with fines. This can barely be named ‘decriminalization’. .
The Observer Research Foundation’s report labelled ‘Jailed for Doing Business’ discovered that there are above 26,134 imprisonment clauses in a total of 843 economic legislations, rules, and regulations that attempt to control businesses and economic activities in India.
The Bill matches the understanding of the government that decriminalization should be limited to regulatory domains. However, the time is now ripe to swing attention to present penal offenses as well. Debates are ongoing about the decriminalization of several penal offenses such as sedition, offenses under the NDPS Act and UAPA Acts, triple talaq and anti-conversion laws, etc. There is an urgent necessity to assess these offenses on a principled basis.
The goal of the Bill is purely to guarantee that imprisonment is substituted with fines for as many offenses as possible. The range to which it thrives in ‘decriminalizing’ offenses, however, is questionable. If these blunders are to be corrected, it is important that a more comprehensive workout is undertaken and that the government prioritizes the needs and requirements of the criminal justice system.
(The writer is a financial and tax specialist, guest faculty, author and public speaker based in Goa.)
