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| India-Pakistan |
| Women cannot be arrested after sunset |
| 2006-06-24 |
| NEW DELHI: Women who have fallen victim to police high handedness have finally some good news. The core of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act was notified on Friday. As per the provisions of the law outlined by the home minister Shivraj Patil no women can be arrested after sunset and before sunrise except in exceptional circumstances. The police will also be required to give information about the arrest of a person as well as place of detention to anyone who may be nominated by the accused. A provision for compensating a person who has been detained by the police without any valid ground has also been made. The government is also considering changing the definition of rape. “The definition is not scientifically correct and we are in the process of formulating a draft, which will define rape. The sentence for a rape accused could also be modified. It is being considered whether 10 years of imprisonment was enough or life imprisonment could be awarded,” said Patil. The government, he said, has also decided to make “plea bargaining,” a new concept, part of the statute to allow the settlement of cases between the accused and the victim through various measures including compensation. This would only apply to offences carrying jail terms less than 10 years and would have to be done through a court. “Though all other provisions of the CrPC amendment bill were notified and brought into effect on April 12, 2006, plea bargaining was left out deliberately as the Parliamentary Standing Committee had recommended setting up of an independent prosecuting agency for success of this provision,” Patil said. |
| Posted by:john |
| #3 Actually several Justices of the US Supreme Court have visted India. They have had consultations with Indian Supreme Court Justices and decisions of the USSC have been cited in judgements of the Indian courts. They are not binding of course but the reasoning behind them (Scalia's arguments etc) carry great weight. |
| Posted by: john 2006-06-24 19:25 |
| #2 It's grand that they are doing it at all. Remember that Indian jurisprudence came to a screeching halt after independence from Britain. So they ended up with a legal system half British/half Indian, partly frozen in the 1940s, and with the Indian version of socialism mixed in, in convoluted ways. With Bush opening up India like Nixon did China, all sorts of new ideas are flooding in. It is also of great help that their PM is a Sikh. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2006-06-24 18:29 |
| #1 unbeliveable they have to do this. I forget, which century is this? |
| Posted by: 2b 2006-06-24 14:27 |