In a surprising revelation, the Karnataka High Court directed the State government to ensure police officers are educated on the necessity of registering crimes under the newly enacted Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) instead of the now-obsolete Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Justice M. Nagaprasanna issued this directive during the hearing of a petition by Geetha, who challenged an FIR filed by local police on July 1. The police had charged Geetha and her co-accused with criminal trespassing and disturbing public peace under sections 447 and 504 of the IPC.
The petitioner argued that the FIR was a retaliatory move by the police in response to a contempt petition she had previously filed against them.
Justice Nagaprasanna highlighted the anomaly, noting that the FIR was filed on the very day the BNS replaced the IPC. Despite this, the police registered the case under the outdated IPC.
As a result, the Court issued an interim order halting further investigation based on the FIR and emphasized the need for police awareness regarding the transition from IPC to BNS.
“Surprisingly, the Police appeared to be unaware of the IPC having gone from 01.07.2024 and the BNS in place. Since the crime is registered on 01.07.2024, it ought to have been registered for the corresponding offences under the BNS and not under the IPC. In that light, there shall be an interim order of stay of further investigation in Crime No.167/2024, qua the petitioners, till the next date of hearing and a direction also to the State to sensitize all the jurisdictional stations to henceforth register crimes only under BNS and not IPC,” the Court stated.
