West Bengal Assembly passes bill seeking death penalty for rape convicts

Twenty-four days after the rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at a Kolkata hospital rocked the nation, the West Bengal legislative assembly on Tuesday passed the Aparajita Woman and Child (West Bengal Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill, 2024, seeking changes in several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023 so that 10 or 20-year jail terms in rape, gangrape and murder cases are replaced with death penalty or imprisonment for remaining life of the convict.

The Bill also proposes amendments to various sections of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act 2012 to ensure time-bound trial, more fast-track courts and added infrastructure for law enforcement agencies.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who has been seeking death sentence for perpetrators of the August 9 crime amid continuing mass protests and demands for her resignation, called the Bill "historic" with the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supporting it.

A two-day special session of the assembly was summoned on Monday only to pass the Bill which the state cabinet approved on August 28. It was passed unanimously after a two-hour discussion.

The Bill proposes amendments to Sections 64, 65, 66, 70 and 71 of BNS to replace punishments such as 10-year imprisonment, 20-year imprisonment, life imprisonment and fine with "imprisonment for life, which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that person's natural life, or with death and fine."

The 10-year imprisonment, life imprisonment and fine prescribed in Section 124 of BNS should be replaced with the words "imprisonment for life, which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that person's natural life and fine," says the Bill.

The two-year jail term and fine prescribed in Sections 72 and 73 of BNS should be replaced with "no less than three years but which may extend to five years, and shall also be liable to fine," the Bill says.

The Bill has also proposed amendments to the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 to ensure medical expenses and rehabilitation of victims, setting up of special courts and constitution of task force headed by a deputy superintendent of police for investigation of "specified offences."

The Bill seeks amendment to Section 193 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 so that investigations are completed within "21 days" instead of "two months."

The Bill has proposed amendments to Section 32 of the POCSO Act so that 10-year imprisonment, life imprisonment and fine are changed to "imprisonment for life, which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that person's natural life, or with death and fine."

During the discussion, BJP's Suvendu Adhikari, the leader of the opposition in the assembly, asked whether the state followed Constitutional norms while framing the bill.

"BNS already has the provision for death sentence. But when BNS was introduced, our chief minister questioned it. We will wait and see if she can frame laws from this Bill," Adhikari said.

Banerjee shot back during her reply. "Please tell the governor (C V Ananda Bose) to sign the Bill so that it can be sent to the President for assent. We will see how law is not framed even after that. We have framed the Bill following Item 1 in the Concurrent List which includes criminal law," she told Adhikari.

Banerjee referred to Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra as examples saying Bengal is not the first state seeking stricter law to stop crime against women.

She said: "Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh are bringing laws. A disease needs a cure. Conviction rate in rape cases is very low in this country. According to the 2022 Crime In India report, charge sheet was filed in 76% rape cases but conviction rate was only 2.56%. When Nyaya Sanhita was introduced, I requested the home minister not to act in hurry. I demanded discussion in Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and all state assemblies."

The Aparajita Woman and Child (West Bengal Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill, 2024 will require Presidential assent under Article 254(2) of the Constitution to become law within the geographical jurisdiction of West Bengal.

According to Article 254(2), a state legislature can seek to amend an existing Union law on a subject mentioned in the Concurrent List, but it cannot become law without assent from the President.

The Andhra Pradesh Disha Bill, 2019 and Shakti Criminal Laws (Maharashtra Amendment) Bill, 2020 both propose death penalty for rape and gang rape convicts, but none have received Presidential assent till date.

The assembly witnessed noisy scenes during the debate with Banerjee referring to rapes and murders of women and minors in BJP-ruled states, such as Unnao and Hathras in Uttar Pradesh, and demanding resignations of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and the chief ministers of these states.

Adhikari and his colleagues countered Banerjee by demanding her resignation and referring to crime against women since 2011 when TMC came to power for the first time.

Adhikari also submitted seven amendments to the Bill but law minister Malay Ghatak, who introduced the Bill, refused to accept them on technical grounds.

On December 6, 2023, the Bengal assembly passed a motion opposing the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bill and the Bharatiya Sakshya Bill calling these "draconian" and "anti-people."

BJP legislators voted against the motion but were outnumbered. In the 294-member House, TMC has 215 members against the BJP's 75.

Passed by Parliament, the new laws have replaced the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Code of Criminal Procedure (Cr.Pc) and the Indian Evidence Act.

On August 9, the body of a 31-year-old post-graduate trainee doctor, who was brutalised according to the post mortem report, was found in the seminar hall of the chest department of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. Sanjay Roy (31), a civic volunteer working for the Kolkata Police, was arrested on August 10 as the prime suspect.

The CBI started probing the crime on August 14, a day after the Calcutta High Court transferred the case from the Kolkata Police to the federal agency.

Since then, doctors, members of the civil society and students across Bengal have hit the streets in thousands alongside people from all walks of life.