The Meghalaya cabinet on Wednesday notified the application of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) to Meghalaya with effect from July 1st 2024.
The Cabinet Minister and MDA Spokesperson Paul Lyngdoh said the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (BNSS) seeks to replace the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC).
Lyngdoh said the government of India has notified that the BNSS, 2023 shall come into force and shall replace the CrPC by July 1, 2024.
The Minister said that the cabinet also approved the guidelines for compulsory crime scene investigation by forensic teams.
“Hence the need to switchover to implementing the BNSS and since these criminal laws are coming into force with effect from July 1, the state government is supposed to notify the application of the BNSS, 2023 to facilitate the education of criminal justice, so this matter was considered by cabinet and it was clear since we were supposed to transit into the new arrangement and replacing the CrPC,” he said.
The minister also informed that accordingly the cabinet has also approved the guidelines for compulsory forensic crime scene investigation.
“With implementation of BNSS, 2023 it has become mandatory for the state to ensure that forensic experts visit crime scene.There are certain categories of crime, which are of a hideous nature where the punishment is seven years of imprisonment and above,” he said.
He added that under the new proposal submitted by the directorate of forensic sciences, there will be mobile vehicles, which will serve as a forensic science investigation team, which would be available at all district headquarters.
Secretary incharge home department Cyril Diengdoh said that the government is in the process of creating more posts for increasing the strength of forensic experts in the state.