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3mo ago

Delhi High Court Rejects Plea to Remove State and Public Tranquility Crimes from Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita

Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya alongside Justice Anish Dayal ruled that only Parliament can amend or repeal those BNS provisions.

A bench of chief justice DK Upadhyay and justice Anish Dayal said that issuing such a direction would amount to legislating, which was not in its realm. (Shutterstock)
The petitioner argued the sections grant the government the right to suppress citizens. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Overview

  • A division bench led by Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Anish Dayal dismissed Upendra Nath Dalai’s PIL, saying the judiciary lacks jurisdiction to compel Parliament to repeal laws.
  • The petition challenged BNS sections 147–158 on offences against the state and 189–197 on offences against public tranquility as remnants of colonial-era statutes.
  • The court held that abolishing those provisions requires a formal amendment act by Parliament and that judicial orders to repeal laws would amount to legislating.
  • Dalai’s plea argued the contested sections violate fundamental rights to equality, life and personal liberty and have been misused under Section 189 on unlawful assembly.
  • The ruling affirms the separation of powers under India’s new penal framework and leaves any change to the legislative process in Parliament’s hands.