Old criminal cases to continue under CrPC: HC
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has ruled that criminal cases initiated before July 1, 2024, will continue to be governed by the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), even after the implementation of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). This decision resolves the legal uncertainty regarding whether pending cases should transition to the new procedural framework.
A Division Bench comprising Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Harpreet Singh Brar settled the matter after two single Benches of the high court issued conflicting rulings. While one Bench had opined that BNSS had replaced CrPC entirely and should govern all post-July 1, 2024, proceedings, the other maintained that cases registered before the new law’s enactment must continue under the CrPC framework.
The court examined whether criminal cases initiated under the old legal framework before July 1, 2024, would remain valid or need to be adjudicated under BNSS. Additionally, it considered whether accused persons booked before this date should seek relief under CrPC or the new legal system.
After a thorough legal analysis, the Bench held that trials, appeals, inquiries, and investigations pending as of July 1, 2024, must proceed under CrPC. It clarified that BNSS does not have retrospective effect and does not impact already ongoing cases.
Referring to explicit provisions within BNSS, the court noted that any trial, inquiry, or investigation initiated under CrPC before the new law’s enactment was “saved” and would continue under the old procedural rules. “The determining factor for applying criminal procedure laws is the date of the commission of the offence or the registration of the FIR,” the Bench asserted.
The case under consideration involved an FIR registered under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) before BNSS was enacted. The investigation was conducted under CrPC, but the trial had not yet commenced when BNSS came into force. Addressing this, the high court ruled that since procedural aspects had already been initiated under CrPC, they would continue under the same legal framework.
"If the investigations are sub judice in respect of an offence registered under the IPC, the relevant procedural law to be applied thereto is the former CrPC,” the Bench stated.
