The Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy on Wednesday unveiled India’s first comprehensive criminal law database, The State of the System (SOS), at the Constitution Club of India in New Delhi..The launch event, titled Unveiling The State of the System, featured a panel of legal experts, policymakers and thought leaders who convened to highlight the pressing need for decriminalisation and the rationalisation of punishments within India's legal framework..The SOS database, now accessible at crimeandpunishment.in, along with its accompanying report, catalogues every act and omission criminalised under 370 Union laws enacted over the past 174 years, across 45 subject areas. It is designed to equip citizens, researchers and policymakers with valuable insights into the breadth and depth of criminalisation in the country, the press release stated.Further, the database also exposes inconsistencies in the way punishments are prescribed and puts forward a principled framework to inform future initiatives in decriminalisation and the formulation of criminal laws..Presenting the report, Naveed Mehmood Ahmad, Lead of the Crime and Punishment team at Vidhi, remarked,“Criminal law, originally intended to address serious threats to public order and national security, now permeates India’s social and regulatory frameworks. Through this report and database, we seek to examine the extent of our dependence on criminal law as a governance tool, and make the case for decriminalising minor offences and rationalising punishments through a principled approach.”.The event also featured a panel discussion with prominent figures including Senior Advocate Sidharth Luthra, Member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister Shamika Ravi and National Human Rights Commission Chairperson Justice V Ramasubramanian.The discussion explored the far-reaching consequences of over-criminalisation from three key angles - the impact on citizens’ ease of living, the compliance burden on businesses, and the strain on state resources..As the Central government gears up to introduce the Jan Vishwas Bill 2.0 and several state governments begin reviewing their laws to identify provisions for decriminalisation and the rationalisation of punishments, the launch of the SOS database represents a significant milestone in this process, the press release mentioned."As a living resource, it is expected to inform the ongoing decriminalisation efforts and other policy interventions towards limiting the reach of criminal law and moving towards trust-based governance. With this initiative, Vidhi aims to enable meaningful stakeholder engagement and contribute to building a legal system that is both equitable and efficient," it added. .Some key points from the report:- Of the 882 entral laws currently in force, 42% (370 laws) contain criminal provisions, collectively criminalising 7,305 actions and omissions.- These range from minor infractions, such as failing to submit documents on time, failing to exercise a dog, or failing to file property tax on time, to serious crimes like illegal possession of arms, murder and sexual assault.- More than 75% of all crimes defined under these laws regulate subject matters such as shipping, taxation, financial institutions and municipal governance - matters unrelated to the traditional domain of criminal justice.- Under Corporate Law, 3 laws attract 262 crimes and under Intellectual Property Law, 5 laws attract 44 crimes with the Companies Act, 2013 containing 241 crimes.- Under taxes, tolls & cess laws, 18 laws attract 265 crimes with the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 containing 45 crimes.- Over 2,000 crimes are punishable by imprisonment of up to 5 years or more. 983 crimes attract a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment, with 106 crimes mandating a minimum of 10 years and 44 mandating a minimum of 20 years.
