The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2025, introduced recently in the Lok Sabha, aims to amend 16 Central Acts. It seeks to decriminalise various offences and rationalise penalties. This Bill is the second phase of the Jan Vishwas reform, following the 2023 Act that decriminalised 183 provisions across 42 laws. The focus remains on enhancing ease of living and doing business by reducing unnecessary criminalisation.
Background and Need for Reform
India has over 880 central laws with criminal provisions covering more than 7,000 offences. Many laws regulate sectors beyond core criminal justice like taxation, shipping, and municipal governance. This has led to excessive criminalisation of minor and technical defaults. Some punishments are disproportionate, such as arrest for milking a cow on the street or not exercising a pet dog properly. These outdated provisions allow arbitrary state power and clash with the principle of proportionality in punishment.
Impact on Business and Justice System
Over half of the laws governing business contain imprisonment clauses. Many compliances impose jail terms for minor breaches. This creates barriers for entrepreneurship, innovation, and economic growth. The legal system suffers from heavy pendency with over 36 million criminal cases pending, most older than a year. Minor offences clog courts, delaying serious cases. Decriminalisation aims to ease this burden and improve judicial efficiency.
Key Provisions of the 2025 Bill
The Bill proposes amendments to 355 provisions, with 288 offences decriminalised. It covers laws such as the Reserve Bank of India Act, Drugs and Cosmetics Act, Motor Vehicles Act, Electricity Act, and others. The changes encourage a trust-based governance model by replacing imprisonment with fines or warnings for first-time or minor offenders.
Introduction of Warnings and Improvement Notices
For 76 offences under 10 Acts, the Bill introduces “warning” and “improvement notice” mechanisms. First-time offenders receive notices instead of immediate penalties. For example, non-standard weights and measures violations will trigger improvement notices requiring rectification. Failure to comply later results in fines, not imprisonment.
Penalty Rationalisation and Deterrence
The Bill removes jail terms for many minor offences and replaces them with monetary penalties. It also introduces automatic 10% penalty increases every three years for repeat offenders. This aims to maintain deterrence without frequent legislative changes. The approach balances trust in citizens with necessary enforcement.
Government’s Vision and Legislative Process
The Bill aligns with the government’s long-standing agenda to simplify laws and reduce unnecessary legal hurdles. It supports ease of doing business and living by cutting down on archaic criminal provisions. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emphasised removing trivial laws that can imprison citizens for minor acts. The Bill is currently under review by the Lok Sabha Select Committee.
Questions for UPSC:
- Critically discuss the impact of excessive criminalisation on India’s judicial system and economic development.
- Examine the role of decriminalisation in promoting ease of doing business and how it affects governance.
- Analyse the principles of proportionality and trust-based governance in the context of legal reforms like the Jan Vishwas Bill 2025.
- Estimate the challenges and benefits of introducing warning and improvement notice mechanisms in regulatory laws.
