3695 people signed the petition, urged political leaders to stop new criminal laws
New Laws: This petition addressed to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary has been sent to the prominent leaders of various political parties.
Country 3,695 people have signed a petition. In this petition, the leaders of the opposition alliance 'India' and several allies of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) have been urged to intervene to stop the implementation of new criminal laws. Prominent leaders who signed the petition include Tushar Gandhi, Tanika Sarkar, Major General (Retd.) Sudhir Vombatkere, Teesta Setalvad, Kavita Srivastava, and Shabnam Hashmi.
This petition, written to Andhra Pradesh Chairman Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and Rashtriya Lok Dal Chairman Jayant Chaudhary, has been delivered to significant figures from several parties. These include Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Communist Party of India (Marxist) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal, and a slew of other figures.
In this regard, the petitioners have requested a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) investigation, legal expert consultation, and a debate in Parliament on the proposed criminal laws.
The petition emphasizes the importance of protecting the democratic values enshrined in the Constitution and protecting the democratic rights of citizens. It highlights serious concerns about the three new laws Indian Civil Defense Code, the Indian Justice Code, Indian Evidence Act. These three laws were passed through Parliament on 20 December 2023 without debate. These laws are set to be implemented from July 1, 2024.
The petitioner argues that these laws are strict and threaten the freedom of citizens. Which includes freedom of speech, right to assembly, and right to protest. The petition states that these new laws can classify legitimate and non-violent democratic acts as 'terrorism'. The petition raises concerns that the recording of FIRs will be at the discretion of the police. The severity of the terms of imprisonment can be increased and all accused can be forced to provide their biometric data to the government.
