The West Bengal government, led by the Trinamool Congress, is set to propose a new motion on the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita at the state legislative Assembly under Rule 169 on Tuesday, July 30th, as per sources. During the recent monsoon session of the Assembly, the government had put forward two motions under Rule 169 – one concerning the 2024 NEET UG paper leak scam and the other related to Indo-Bhutan water distribution.
A senior TMC official mentioned, “We have scheduled this motion for Tuesday as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee believes that the Central Government should allow more time before implementing new criminal laws. The states have been pressured by the Centre, displaying an anti-federalism stance.”
According to insiders at the TMC, the proposal will call on the Central Government to delay the implementation of the three laws. “Every state requires additional time before enforcing such extensive legislation,” a source remarked. Banerjee has already established a committee to assess the three recent criminal statutes — The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA), 2023, and The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023 — that came into effect nationwide on July 1.
Retired judge Ashim Kumar Roy will lead the committee, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Home department of West Bengal. In the final week of June, Banerjee penned a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting a delay in the enforcement of the three new criminal laws. Additionally, she urged for the laws to be presented for renewed discussion and examination in Parliament. She also appealed to PM Modi to reconsider the entire matter.
The letter I am writing expresses my deep concern about the upcoming enforcement of three significant laws, namely The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNA) 2023, The Bharatiya Sakhsya Adhiniyam (BSA) 2023, and The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanita (BNSS) 2023. Nonetheless, Governor C V Ananda Bose stated, “West Bengal should not function as an independent entity or be transformed into a lawless state.”
A press release from the Raj Bhawan stated, “The Governor has requested Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to promptly provide a detailed report on the purpose of the Committee for the revision of the amended CRPC, IPC, and Evidence Act. The Governor specifically seeks information on whether the West Bengal Government has responded to the proposal in a timely manner as requested by the Government of India.” In response to this development, a member of the BJP remarked, “This administration is behaving as if it is a separate nation.
They are unwilling to comply with any laws set by the Central Government. They are introducing motions on matters that do not fall under state jurisdiction. The distribution of water between two countries should not be a state matter. Yet, they have introduced a motion on water distribution with Bhutan, which is an international issue that only the two countries involved can resolve.”
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