MHA and NJA Host Conference on New Criminal Laws

• MHA and National Judicial Academy Bhopal hold a two-day National Conference on the three new criminal laws.
• Union Home Secretary says the reforms mark a new era of speedy, transparent, and technology-enabled justice.
• Emphasis on complete digitization — e-Sakshya, e-Summon, and ICJS to become default operational systems.
• Justice Aniruddha Bose calls it a unique collaboration between police, prosecution, and judiciary.

GG News Bureau
Bhopal, 10th Nov: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India, in partnership with the National Judicial Academy (NJA), Bhopal, organized a two-day National Conference on the three new criminal laws on November 8–9, 2025. The event brought together 120 participants representing the judiciary, prosecution, and police from all states and union territories, along with eminent academics and legal practitioners.

Addressing the conference, Union Home Secretary Shri Govind Mohan said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, India is building a secure, transparent, and evidence-based criminal justice system. He noted that under the guidance of Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah, the country has entered a new era of speedy justice.

Shri Mohan emphasized that the new criminal laws decolonize India’s justice system, making it victim-centric and technology-enabled. He lauded the National Judicial Academy’s contribution in framing model rules and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for innovations such as e-Sakshya (electronic evidence), e-Summon (digital issuance of legal notices), community service as an alternative sentence, and Nyay Shruti, a system for audio-visual access to justice.

Highlighting the pivotal role of technology, the Home Secretary said it forms the bedrock of the new framework, addressing delays in investigation and trial through digitized processes. He noted that the Supreme Court’s e-Committee has been instrumental in driving the technological integration necessary for implementing these laws effectively.

Shri Mohan urged state governments to establish monitoring mechanisms to assess implementation progress and ensure regular updates of rules and SOPs. Police departments were advised to fully digitize investigation and prosecution workflows and adopt e-Sakshya, e-Summons, and the Integrated Criminal Justice System (ICJS) as default modes.

Hon’ble Justice Aniruddha Bose, Director of the National Judicial Academy, described the conference as a landmark moment where the three pillars of the criminal justice system — police, prosecution, and judiciary — came together for collective learning. He praised the MHA for initiating the joint capacity-building effort and emphasized the need to stay abreast with evolving ICT tools and legal frameworks.

The two-day conference featured detailed sessions on substantive reforms, digital transformation, scientific investigation, prosecution’s evolving role, and the time-bound justice mechanisms introduced under the new laws. Participants engaged in case studies, interactive sessions, and demonstrations of new digital tools.

According to MHA data, 26 States/UTs have notified e-Sakshya, 24 have issued notifications on e-Summons, 16 High Courts have implemented Nyay Shruti covering 20 States/UTs, and 28 States/UTs have recognized community service as punishment.

Training has been completed for 15.3 lakh police officers, 12,100 prosecution officers, 43,941 prison officers, 3,036 forensic scientists, and 18,884 judicial officers under the new framework. As of now, around 50 lakh FIRs have been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), with 33 lakh charge sheets filed, 22 lakh Sakshya IDs created, and over 14 lakh victims receiving automated digital updates.

The conference reaffirmed the government’s commitment to delivering swift, transparent, and tech-integrated justice for all citizens, marking a major step in India’s journey toward a modernized and efficient criminal justice system.