The Aparajita Bill, aimed at strengthening laws against rape and sexual offenses in West Bengal, has been returned to the state government by Governor C V Ananda Bose. The move follows serious objections raised by the central government regarding proposed changes to the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) within the bill.
The Aparajita Bill, officially known as the "Aparajita Women and Child (West Bengal Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill, 2024," was passed unanimously by the West Bengal Assembly in September 2024. The bill was introduced in response to the tragic rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata in August 2024, an incident that sparked widespread outrage and demands for stricter laws to protect women and children. The bill prescribes the death penalty for rape and also imposes a life sentence without parole on those convicted. It prescribes a compulsory death penalty for the offence of committing rape and inflicting injury that results in the death of the victim or causes her to be in a vegetative state.
However, the Centre has expressed strong reservations, finding the bill's proposed punishments for rape, including the mandatory death penalty in certain cases, to be "excessively harsh and disproportionate". Raj Bhawan officials pointed out that the Bill proposes to make the death penalty mandatory in cases where the victim dies or is left in a vegetative state under Section 66 of the BNS. "The Ministry of Home Affairs has raised concerns over the removal of judicial discretion in such cases,” the official said. According to Raj Bhawan, the Bill also proposes to delete Section 65 of the BNS, 2023, thereby eliminating the distinction in punishment for the rape of women under 16 and under 12 years of age. “The Ministry has observed that the removal of such classification violates the principle of proportionality in sentencing,” the official added.
The Centre's critique highlights that the Aparajita Women and Child (West Bengal Criminal Laws Amendment) Bill proposes disproportionate penalties for rape. Specifically, they argue the changes are excessively harsh, including a push for life imprisonment or the death penalty for rape offenses.
Legal experts have pointed out potential issues with the bill's provisions, noting that no other offense in any other law prescribes a mandatory death sentence. Studies have also indicated that there's little evidence suggesting the death penalty acts as an effective deterrent to crime, with a significant portion of death sentences being commuted or overturned on appeal.
Despite the Governor's decision and the Centre's concerns, the state government has maintained that it has not received any official communication regarding observations on the bill's provisions.
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) may protest the Governor's decision. The party had previously urged the Union government to grant assent to the bill, with a delegation of TMC MPs even meeting with President Droupadi Murmu in February to push for its early approval.
As criminal law falls under the Concurrent List of the Indian Constitution, the bill requires the assent of both the Governor and the President. The bill is now in limbo, awaiting further evaluation and inputs from the President.
