PROVISIONS IN BNS TO DEAL CRIMES

The Ministry of Home Affairs announced that the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 places offences against women and children in a dedicated Chapter V, giving them precedence over other crimes. The law removes earlier age‑differentiated punishments for gang‑rape, prescribing life imprisonment or death for gang‑rape of a woman below 18 years. Victim statements in rape cases must be recorded through audio‑video means, preferably by a woman magistrate, and medical reports must be submitted to the investigating officer within seven days. The Act also criminalises employing a child to commit an offence, with imprisonment of seven to ten years. These provisions aim to strengthen protection and speedy justice for women and children.