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Parliament passed Criminal Law 'Amendment' Bill 2018: Details, Features, Significance
Parliament passed Criminal Law 'Amendment' Bill 2018: Details, Features, Significance, Highlights
India's Parliament on 6th August 2018 passed the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2018 that proposes to enhance punishment for rape of a child. The Bill was earlier passed by the Lok Sabha on July 30, 2018.
The Bill seeks to replace the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018 promulgated on 21 April 2018 following an outcry over the rape and murder of a minor girl in Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir and the rape of another woman at Unnao in Uttar Pradesh.
The Bill amends Indian Penal Code (IPC), Criminal Procedure Code, Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Indian Evidence Act. It provides for stringent punishment of jail term of minimum 20 years or life imprisonment or death for the rape of girl less than 12 years.
The Bill provides punishment with imprisonment for rest of life or death sentence in case of gang rape of girl below 12 years. It increases minimum punishment from 10 years to 20 years for the crime of rape of a girl under 16 years, which can be extended to imprisonment for the rest of life.
The Bill also increases minimum punishment for rape of women from the rigorous imprisonment of 7 years to 10 years, which can be extended to life imprisonment.
Background
Four states already have brought in law after passing it through their respective assemblies for capital punishment to those who rape girls below 12 years. The states are Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh.
