Reforming Bail Law in India Under Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023

Abstract

Severe challenges to fast track justice is a question that the Indian criminal justice system has been struggling with long in the arena of procedural delay, inefficiencies and hindrances to speedy delivery of justice. To address these irrespective issues, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) is considered one of the most significant pieces of legislation in amenable administration to do away with the prevailing situation. This paper presents a critical analysis on whether the changes that have
been initiated in the BNSS can indeed deliver on the constitutional guarantee of quick justice within the Indian Constitution contained in Article 21 thereof. In a doctrinal method with judicial interpretations and comparative legal insights, the paper makes an examination of the legal and functional boundaries of the BNSS. Some of the outstanding features include having fixed timelines of investigation and trial, introducing digital systems like video conferencing and e-summons, streamlining of bail process and providing increased attention of rights of the victims during criminal proceedings. Such provisions represent the trend towards efficiency and accountability, and, in most ways, they correspond to international norms and constitutional principles. Variations However, the research warns that the actual effect of these reforms lies in the ability to handle systemic hindrances. Chronic problems of insufficient amount of judicial personnel, ineffective investigation procedures, absence of digital
infrastructure in rural jurisdiction, and weak legal aid system might unravel the success of the new law. The BNSS as a step of progressive transformation of legal thinking will be dependent upon the better establishment of institutions, capacity building that is selective and that focuses on building and also deployment of mechanisms that will promote transparency and accountability. With such a help only, the possibility of more citizen-responsive and citizen-centered criminal justice system can be achieved to the fullest.