Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud stressed the “pressing need to strike a balance” on Monday, stating that an individual’s right to privacy is violated when investigative agency take personal gadgets without a warrant.
The Chief Justice of India (CJI) stated that Section 94 of the recently passed Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, and Section 185 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023, endow courts and law enforcement agencies with the power to “call for documents and materials, including digital evidence deemed necessary for investigation.”
The urgent need to find a balance between investigative requirements and individual privacy rights is highlighted by instances of raids being carried out and by instances of personal devices being seized without authorization, according to CJI.
The 20th D P Kohli Memorial Lecture, “Adopting Technology to Advance Criminal Justice,” was being given by the CJI. The talk takes place on CBI Day, which commemorates the establishment of the Central Bureau of Investigation in 1963. Attorney General of India R Venkataramani, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, and CBI Director Praveen Sood were in attendance.
The Evidence Act and the Code of Criminal Procedure were superseded, respectively, by the BNSS and the BAS.
The CJI demanded a “swift” administration of justice while highlighting the difficulties in the investigation and trial of a corruption accusation.
“To prosecute or defend in a CBI case is no easy task. Because of the nature of the investigation undertaken by the CBI, the record and documentary evidence is bulky and complicated. Many scientific and field specific expert witnesses require scrutiny. The number of oral witnesses cited by the prosecution may run into triple digits. The nature of crime may also require close scrutiny of the functioning of a government department or the specialised field,” the CJI said.
“The justice delivery mechanism must be swift. The life of the accused is altered and their reputation is significantly hurt when they are accused of an offence. Delays in the disposal of cases therefore become a significant impediment in the process of justice delivery,” he said.
The recently passed criminal statutes were also praised by the CJI as a “significant step towards modernising the justice system.”
Parliament passed new criminal legislation that cover substantive offence, procedure, and evidence. The goal of these legislation is to digitise several facets of criminal proceedings. This is a big step in the direction of updating the legal system. Under the proposed legislation, every phase of a criminal investigation—from the first registration of a First Information Report to the ultimate delivery of judgment—will be digitally documented, he added.
