New Criminal Laws: First FIR Under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita Filed In Gwalior, Not Delhi, Clarifies HM Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah addressed a press conference to speak about the three new laws implemented under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita from July 1 where he clarified that the first case with these codes were filed only few minutes after midnight in Gwalior.

He also spoke about the case that was earlier reported as the first FIR under BNS in Delhi against a vendor and said, "there were provisions for the same earlier too and it is not a new provision. Police used the provision to review it and dismissed that case."

Elaborating the case in Gwalior, Shah said, "the first case (under the new laws) has been registered at a Police station in Gwalior. It was a case of theft, someone's motorcycle was stolen. The case was registered at 12.10 am."

He also mentioned that that the first case under new criminal laws was registered in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. The case registered in Delhi was one of the first cases registered under the new laws.

Another case from Chhattisgarh has also taken the spotlight as Kabirdham SP Abhishek Pallav said that he filed the first FIR under BNS and BNSS at Rengakhar police station at 12:05 am on July 1.

Pallav told PTI, "We reached an information at 12:05 am on July 1, that a fight broke out with the owner of a truck regarding the papers of the vehicle. The police officials reached the spot immediately on receiving the information and at around 12:30 am an FIR was lodged. It is possibly the first case filed under the new criminal law."

Delhi: Case Filed Against Vendor Under BNS

The case has been registered against a street vendor under the section of 285 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for obstruction under foot over bridge of New Delhi Railway Station and making sales.

The FIR was registered under Section 285 of the BNS which states, "Whoever, by doing any act, or by omitting to take order with any property in his possession or under his charge, causes danger, obstruction or injury to any person in any public way or public line of navigation, shall be punished with fine which may extend to Rs 5,000."

The police said an incident was reported at 12:15 am against a street vendor, who allegedly obstructed a public way to sell goods at a foot overbridge near the New Delhi station.

After instructions to move went unheeded, a patrol officer registered a case at 1:30 am.

The officer used the e-Pramaan app to record the seizures made, the FIR stated.

The app, handled by the Delhi Police's Crime Branch, will directly feed the content to police records for further investigation, an officer said.

Delhi Police Trained To Understand New Criminal Laws

The Delhi Police was all set to implement the three new criminal laws as they received proper trainings to understand the laws and were given handbooks to study them.

A 14-member committee was constituted in January 2024 to study the laws and prepare the study material for the Delhi Police personnel. The committee was led by Special Commissioner of Police Chhaya Sharma and comprised DCP Joy Tirkey, Additional DCP Uma Shankar and other officers.

"There will be helpline numbers for the IOs to help them in understanding the law," said the police officer.

During the last 15 days, the Delhi Police personnel initiated a trial process where they registered dummy FIRs, said the officer.

As per the new law, the evidence collection process at the crime scene will be mandatorily videographed to prevent evidence tampering.

"The Investigative Officers (IOs) captured pictures and recorded the crime scene with their mobile phone cameras and subsequently uploaded them on the e-Praman Application," said the officer.

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam will replace the British-era Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act, respectively.

Commissioner Sanjay Arora speaking to reporters on Monday said that the force was fortunate the new laws came into force on 'Commissionerate Day'.

"We are fortunate as today is our Commissionerate Day and, on the same day, these laws are being implemented," Arora said.

The first FIR under the new laws was registered early on Monday, he added.