Amit Shah fact-checks reporter on first-ever case filed under new criminal laws

Union home minister Amit Shah

Union home minister Amit Shah on Monday said that the first case registered under the new criminal laws was in Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior.

He said this while responding to media queries about the first case lodged under the new laws - which have come into force starting July 1 - amid reports that an FIR registered in Delhi was the first under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

He clarified that the case registered at Kamla Market police station was one of the first cases registered in Delhi but the provision for it was already there in the old system.

"The first case (under the new laws) has been registered at a Police station in Gwalior. It was a case of theft, someone's motorcycle was stolen. The case was registered at 12.10 am ... As far as the case against a vendor (registered at a Police Station in Delhi) is concerned, there were provisions for the same earlier too and it is not a new provision. Police used the provision to review it and dismissed that case," he said.

Speaking at a media briefing on Monday, Shah gave an overview of the new criminal laws which have replaced the colonial-era Indian Penal Code (IPC).

He said the focus is to provide speedy trial and justice to the victims, adding that "Nyay" (justice) not "Dand" (punishment) is the idea behind the new laws.

"First of all, I would like to congratulate the people of the country that about 77 years after independence, our criminal justice system is becoming completely 'Swadeshi'. This will function on Indian ethos. After 75 years, these laws were contemplated upon and when these laws are in effect from today, colonial laws have been scrapped and laws made in the Indian Parliament are being brought into practice. Instead of 'Dand', it is now 'Nyay'. Instead of delay, there will be speedy trial and speedy justice. Earlier, only the rights of the Police were protected but now, vicitms' and complainants' rights will be protected too," he said.

The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) came into effect on Monday, replacing the British-era Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act, respectively.