Sansad TV Perspective: The Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill, 2022: Unmasking Criminals

In the series Sansad TV Perspective, we bring you an analysis of the discussion featured on the insightful programme ‘Perspective’ on Sansad TV, on various important topics affecting India and also the world. This analysis will help you immensely for the IAS exam, especially the mains exam, where a well-rounded understanding of topics is a prerequisite for writing answers that fetch good marks.

In this article, we feature the discussion on the topic: The Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill, 2022: Unmasking Criminals

Anchor: Teena Jha

Participants: 

1. Dr. Vikram Singh, Former DGP, Uttar Pradesh
2. Sangram Patnaik, Advocate, Supreme Court
3. Shyam Suman, Legal Editor, Hindustan

Context: The Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill has been passed by the Parliament and it seeks to repeal the Identification of Prisoners Act, 1920. 

An Overview: 

• This bill expands the scope of information the government can collect from the convicts, arrested persons and other persons such as habitual offenders.
• The major objective of this legislation is to improve the conviction rate in the country, protect the human rights of citizens and convey a strong message of action against crime in the society. 
• This bill has attracted extensive debates in the parliament and across the nation raising significant concerns pertaining to Fundamental Rights and the checks and balances that are ensured by the government to prevent the misuse of the law. 

The Identification of Prisoners Act 1920: Provisions

• It allows police officers to collect certain identifiable information (fingerprints and footprints) of persons including convicts and arrested persons. 
• In order to aid the investigation of an offence, the magistrate may order measurements and photographs of a person to be taken.
• Once the person has been discharged, all material must be destroyed. 

 Intrusion of Technology in Criminal Investigation:

• With the significant advancements in DNA technology, alternate methods for the measurement of persons accused of a crime can be applied which can speed up the investigation process. In this context, the DNA Technology (Use & Application) Regulation Bill, 2019 which is pending in the Lok Sabha, provides a framework. 
• In 1980, the Law Commission of India examined the Identification of Prisoners Act 1920 and observed that there is a need to revise the act to bring it in alignment with the modern trends of investigation. 
• The expert committee on Reforms of the Criminal Justice System recommended the amendment of the Identification of Prisoners Act 1920 to empower the magistrate for the authorisation of collection of data such as blood samples for DNA, hair, saliva and semen. 

Major Concerns with the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill 2022:

• This bill draws a prominent tendency to violate the Right to Privacy as well as the Right to Equality. Certain provisions of the bill allow the collection of personal data of individuals which infringes an individual’s Right to Privacy which was recognised as a fundamental right by the Supreme Court. 
• It may also fail Article 14 requirements of a law to be fair and reasonable and for equality under the law.
• The data can be collected not just from the convict but also from any other persons to assist the investigation. 
• The bill allows retaining the data for 75 years and it shall be deleted only on the final discharge of the person arrested for an offence. The retention of data in a central database on the grounds of its potential use for the investigation, in the future, may not meet the necessity and proportionality standards. The NCRB will be the central repository for the retention of the data and can be shared with other law enforcement agencies. This creates umpteen rooms for the misuse of the introduced legislation.
• The collection of biological samples adds to the exception that such samples can be forcibly collected if the offence is directed against women and children. For instance, it could be a theft against a woman on the grounds of which the biological samples of the convict can be collected. Such a provision violates equality of law between persons who stole an item from a man and from a woman. 
• Several safeguards to protect the individual against arbitrary detentions have been diluted by lowering the level of the official authorised to collect the data. 

Ways suggested for a secured tomorrow:

• The arguments in association with the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill, 2022 highlight the biggest concern of the people regarding data protection. This is why the experts advocate for a strong Data Protection Bill to be tabled in the Parliament to protect the citizens from the extensive and unfettered purview of surveillance by the state. 
• As the bill envisaged to expand the scope of data collection which is now not only allowing the collection of biometric samples but the handwriting of an individual is given consideration under “behavioural attributes” as an aid for investigation. This ensures enormous powers to the state for which it is suggested that there must be rock-solid safeguards for the fundamental rights of the citizens which shall operate hand in hand with the legislation passed. 
• The bill needs to be revisited to assess the time period for the retention of records for 75 years which is contradictory to the life expectancy of an Indian citizen which is 69.6 years. This provision must be analysed with a suitable rationale. 
• An ecosystem of security strengthened by proper training and policing under the supervision of senior officials and law enforcement authorities ensuring proper checks and balances, will make a foolproof system of a criminal investigation on the basis of scientific evidence and actually pave the way to reap the benefits of the legislation. 

Read more about the Criminal Procedure Identification Bill 2022 in the linked article.
Read more summaries of Perspective in the link.

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