List of Current Affairs

Why in News?

The Delhi High Court has refused to impose a blanket ban on over-the-counter sale of acid in retail stores in the National Capital in the matter of Shaheen Malik v. State of GNCTD Through Principal Secretary & Ors.

Background

• The Bench was dealing with a plea filed by an acid attack survivor named Shaheen Malik seeking a ban on the over-the-counter sale of acid.
• Shaheen Malik also prayed for repeal of the amendment to the Delhi Poisons Possession and Sale Rules, 2015, which permits the sale of acid in licensed stores.

Court’s Observations

• A Division Bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sanjeev Narula allowed the sale of acid while stating that striking a balance between public safety and the legitimate uses of acid for industrial and other regulated purposes is crucial.
• It was further observed that acid serves various legitimate uses and applications in different industries, a blanket prohibition could inadvertently affect businesses and individuals who require it for lawful purposes.
• The Court in its order also directed the Delhi Government to conduct a comprehensive empirical study to assess the potential consequences of a complete ban on acid sale on various sectors, individuals, and businesses.

Acid Attack

• According to National Crime Records Bureau (Ministry of Home Affairs) data Acid Attack cases reported in past years are as follows:
• Acid Attack - 249 cases in 2019, 182 cases in 2020, 176 cases in 2021.
• Attempt to Acid Attack - 67 cases in 2019, 60 cases in 2020, 73 cases in 2021.
• The Ministry of Home Affairs issued an advisory in 2015 to all states to ensure speedy justice in cases of acid attacks by expediting prosecution.

Legal Provisions

• Provisions under Indian Penal Code, 1860 regarding Acid Attack were added by the 2013 amendment to the Act under Sections 326A, 326B.
• Section 326A - Voluntarily causing grievous hurt by use of acid, etc.—Whoever causes permanent or partial damage or deformity to, or burns or maims or disfigures or disables, any part or parts of the body of a person or causes grievous hurt by throwing acid on or by administering acid to that person, or by using any other means with the intention of causing or with the knowledge that he is likely to cause such injury or hurt, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which shall not be less than ten years but which may extend to imprisonment for life, and with fine.
• Provided that such fine shall be just and reasonable to meet the medical expenses of the treatment of the victim.
• Provided further that any fine imposed under this section shall be paid to the victim.
• Section 326B - Voluntarily throwing or attempting to throw acid — Whoever throws or attempts to throw acid on any person or attempts to administer acid to any person, or attempts to use any other means, with the intention of causing permanent or partial damage or deformity or burns or maiming or disfigurement or disability or grievous hurt to that person, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which shall not be less than five years but which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.
• Explanation 1 — For the purposes of section 326A and this section, "acid" includes any substance which has acidic or corrosive character or burning nature, that is capable of causing bodily injury leading to scars or disfigurement or temporary or permanent disability.
• Explanation 2 — For the purposes of section 326A and this section, permanent or partial damage or deformity shall not be required to be irreversible.
• The provision of Compensation to the victims is provided by Section 357A of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973(CrPC) where District Legal Service Authority or the State Legal Service Authority, as the case may be, shall decide the quantum of compensation to be awarded under the scheme.
• Whereas Section 357B of CrPC talks about the provision that Compensation to be in addition to fine under section 326A or section 376D of Indian Penal Code i.e. the compensation payable by the State Government under section 357A shall be in addition to the payment of fine to the victim under section 326A, section 376AB, section 376D, section 376DA and section 376DB of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
• The Delhi Poisons Possession and Sale Rules, 2015 incorporates a provision that permits sale of acid to vendors who are licensed at the discretion of the licensing authority. The license is issued only to applicants who demonstrate compliance with the stipulated provisions.

Case Law

In Laxmi v. Union of India (2013), the Supreme Court outlined that establishments selling acid would need a licence to do so and have to be registered under the Poisons Act 1919. The judgement of the case further emphasized on following points:

• Sections 326A and 326B, which particularly addressed the offence of the acid assault, were added to Section 326 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
• The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 was amended to incorporate Section 357B, which ensures that the victim will get reimbursement in addition to the penalties required under Sections 326A and 376D of the IPC. Whereas Section 357A was added to explain the victim compensation programmer.
• COMPENSATION - The victim of acid attack is entitled to compensation of at least three lakh rupees, according to the Government’s Victim Compensation Scheme, which also established a consistent method for paying the compensation.
• It was emphasized that no facility, not even a private hospital, could refuse the victim medical care.
• When hospitals are short on equipment, the victim should first get primary care before being transferred to the appropriate hospital.
• The restrictions on acid sales and purchases were imposed.

Guideline by the Supreme Court for sale of acid:

• The Supreme Court gave guidelines about the sale of acid, to be followed in states which did not have state rules for the sale of acid.
• Under these guidelines, the shopkeepers must follow the following regulations:
• They can only undertake over-the-counter sale of acid, if they maintain a register with the details of the buyer, their address, and the quantity sold.
• They must only sell acid after the buyer shows a government issued photo ID with the address of the person and specifies their reason for buying the acid.
• They must declare their stocks of acid within 15 days to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) of the district.
• They must not sell acid to minors.

Why in News?

• Recently, the Rajya Sabha has passed the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2023 for the purpose of amending the Cinematograph Act, 1952.
• It was introduced in Rajya Sabha on 20th July 2023 and will now be sent to Lok Sabha.

Background

• The Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on February 12, 2019, proposing changes related only to film piracy.
• This Bill was referred to the Standing Committee on Information Technology, which presented its report in March 2020.
• The revised Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2021 was released on 18th June 2021.
• After the consultations with the industry stakeholders in the year 2022, the Bill was introduced in the year 2023.

Legal Provisions

Features of the Bill:

• The U/A category has been substituted with the following three categories based on age:
  • UA 7+
  • UA 13+
  • UA 16+
• The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) has been empowered to sanction the film with a separate certificate for its exhibition on television and other media.
• The Bill also clarifies that the Centre will not have any revisional powers over CBFC certificates.
• Two new sections 6AA and 6AB has been inserted in relation to “Prohibition of unauthorized recording” and “Prohibition of unauthorized exhibition of films.”
• It also makes “attempt” and “abetment” to make unauthorized recording punishable.
• The aforesaid offences will be punishable with imprisonment between 3 months and 3 years, and a fine between Rs.3 Lakh and 5% of the audited gross production cost.
• It proposes to replace the current 10-year validity period for film certification with perpetual validity.
• The Bill takes away the revisional power of central government in the light of Supreme Court judgement in Union of India v. K.M. Shankarappa(2001).
• In K.M Shankarappa v. Union of India (1990), the Karnataka High Court struck down the power to review a film after its approval by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) and the decision was upheld by the Supreme Court of India in the case of Union of India v. K.M. Shankarappa (2001).

Why in News?

• The Jan Vishwas (Amendment) Bill, 2023 is passed in the lower house of the Parliament of India on 27 June 2023.
• The bill aims to amend certain enactments for decriminalising and rationalising minor offences to further enhance trust-based governance for ease of living and doing business.
• The bill states that, the Jan Vishwas (Amendment) Act, 2023 shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
  • The Central Government may appoint different dates for amendments relating to different enactments mentioned in the Schedule to the aforementioned Act.

Background

• The Bill was first introduced in Lok Sabha on 22nd December 2022.
• It was later referred to a Joint Committee of the Parliament.
• The Report of the Committee has been laid before Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha on 17th March 2023 and 20th March 2023, respectively.
  • The Committee recommended a few more amendments to the Bill.
  • The committee also made 7 general recommendations, out of which, 6 recommendations received the assent of all the Ministries/Departments concerned.
• A total of 183 provisions are being proposed to be decriminalized in 42 Central Acts administered by 19 Ministries or Departments.

Major Proposals

The bill proposed to bring measures mentioned below:

(a) Fines or penalties for certain offences in existing legislations will increase by 10% in every three years from the commencement of the Act

(b) establishment of Adjudicating Officers;

(c) establishment of Appellate Authorities; and

(d) removed all the offences under the Indian Post Office Act, 1898 and decriminalized offences under the High Denomination Bank Notes (Demonetisation) Act, 1978.

Major Acts Proposed to be Amended

42 Acts are proposed to be amended some major changes among them are mentioned below:

• The Information Technology Act, 2000: The existing penalties are substituted to a remarkable extent adhering to the demand of the time.
• The Environment Protection Act, 1986: Penalties are added for various breaches of the provisions. Also, definition of ‘Fund’ is inserted in the act to establish ‘Environment Protection Fund’ under Section 16 of the Act.
• The Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940: An imprisonment of two years and fine of 10, 000 rupees is substituted with fine of 5 lakh rupees under Section 30 of the Act.
• The Cinematograph Act, 1952: Fines are increased. Punishment for altering and tampering with any film after certification and exhibition of film to someone including a child who is not permitted under the certificate to watch the film is added in the proposal.
• The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988: ‘Compounding of Offences’ to be substituted with the existing Section 200 of the Act is proposed.
• The Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002: The schedule in Part A is proposed to be amended.