Classes, notes and homework: Chandigarh Cops begin prep for new criminal laws

On Monday , 175 police officers in the Union Territory of Chandigarh walked into the auditorium of the Chandigarh Judicial Academy in a new avatar , as students.

The three day programme is a proper back-to-school exercise for the lawmen.

Classes start everyday at 10 am.

The policemen are expected to take notes.

And there will be homework that they are expected to complete and submit.

And yes -- there are books.

“Last week I bought books that have been published recently from the Sector 17 market,” said one of the students, Sudesh Sharma, in-charge of the police post at Dariya in Chandigarh.

The stakes are high. The policemen are in class to learn about the three new criminal laws India’s Parliament passed recently, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam.

Together, they constitute an entirely new code and system, replacing one that was at least 164 years old.

And Chandigarh is ground zero -- on December 21, Union home minister Amit Shah announced that the UT would be the first to implement the three laws, by December 2024.

The laws have several differences from the Indian Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code and Indian Evidence Act that they will replace. Some changes deal with offences of terrorism, crimes against women, acts against the State, registration of e-FIRs, and electronic evidence. They also make it mandatory for the police to record photo and video evidence of crime spots, and use them as evidence.

On Monday, the 175 trainees included deputy superintendents of police, inspectors(many of them station house officers),and sub inspectors . Monday’s lessons were on what constitutes evidence and laws relating to confession and admission.

Chandigarh police chief Praveer Ranjan said: “Those undergoing training are all field officers posted at the stations. When the new law comes into force, they will be ready and are the first ones to implement it. In three different batches of 175 officers, all the investigating officers will be ready within two weeks. Later we will conduct training for the whole force. Separately the Bureau of Police Research and Development is also conducting an orientation course on the new laws for all constables and head constables.”

The tutors on Monday included a serving additional sessions judge. As the judge explained how, under the new laws, a confession before the police will be a valid evidence only if investigators recover a new piece of information from it, some of the police officers sought a clarification on the definition of new information.

Some police officers came with notebooks in which they took notes, others sported, Chandigarh police dairy planners, and still others were recording the session on their mobile phones.

And most came prepared. “Our course coordinator handed us the schedule of the three days course in advance. We were told to be prepared for the lessons that would be taught the following day. Last night, after work I was studying the laws relating to confession by the accused and what constitutes evidence,” Sharma said.

Course coordinator Pradeep Mehta, who retired as joint director(prosecution) of Punjab government said the introduction of new laws has led to a scramble among both police personnel and lawyers to brush up on the new law. He added that classes at the academy by judicial officers and experts will help the police understand the legal interpretation of the laws.

“As soon as the new laws were announced, we immediately bought books (on them). I am 70 and at my age, I finished reading it in just a few days. This is a learning process for both teachers and students. We received a request from Chandigarh police to teach the police personnel and so we got these police officers here at the academy,” he said.

In between sessions, the police personnel discussed the pros and cons of the law. One welcomed the new provision allowing the use of handcuffs on all accused. Another said it could lead to violation of rights with everyone being cuffed.

“The problem of witnesses turning hostile will be a thing of the past. Witnesses always say in court that they were tutored by police and forced to give their statement. Under the new laws everything will be video graphed and presented in court,” sub inspector Anish Singh said, although he isn’t sure how police stations will store the videos.

“The video file will be heavy. We visit so many stations. Where will be store the files? Classes related to Evidence Act are very important. It is important for us to understand how to record videos or store it? Can I do it with my phone or will there be a dedicated phone assigned for this?,” he asked

Inspector Neeraj Sarna, who is with the traffic unit said he has returned to school after 33 years. “I studied IPC 33 years ago when I was fresh out of college. It was difficult to grasp the law then because we did not have practical knowledge. I have realised that it is easier to grasp and understand the nuances in the new laws because we have already worked on the crimes mentioned in the book.”

There are four sessions of one hour each every day. Between the sessions there is a half an hour tea break and one lunch break for about an hour and a half. At the end of each session, some police officers stand outside to catch some sun and beat the winter chill, while others try to get their doubts clarified . But most are catching up with work.

“Work does not stop. After 4 pm when the class ends, I will be meeting complaints who are waiting at the station. Later tonight, I have night duty. But we will ensure Chandigarh implements this successfully and we become a role model,” said Raj Kumar, additional SHO of the sector 31 police station.

He has spent lunch catching up with his deputy. Another officer, inspector Om Prakash missed lunch altogether. The station house officer of sector 36 station was investigating a bomb threat; it turned out to be a hoax. ” Today’s lesson was important, so I even skipped a court hearing in the morning. My colleague requested court for another date. I was summoned to give evidence in court in an old case. But I could not go because I had to be here to learn what evidence means under the new laws”