Terrorism is an issue which ahs plagued the world at the moment and almost all major problems related to the existence of a civil society can be traced back to terrorism. In India, in aby major part of a city or township, we find government broadcasting warning messages to the general public about keeping away from unknown items as it can be a bomb. The fear in which people go to the populated areas today is still there but the fear one used to have during 2000- 2012 in a populated area in a large city or town is cannot be comprehended. This in itself is a curse to our being.
Today,
many countries throughout the globe have recognised this menace and pledged to
counter it together with shared intelligence and counter- terror strategies.
But at the same time there still exists countries in our neighbourhood like
Pakistan, Afghanistan, Myanmar etc, which still relay on terrorism as a way to
forward their end goals, which is destruction and loss to India. Due to power
politics, there exist superpowers and countries in our neighbourhood who will
support these terror factories monetarily to ensure that India does not grow.
Not just other countries, even in India itself, you will find people resonating
with the idea to harm India and further their selfish objectives.
India has
recognised this issue and brought in laws against it to prevent terrorism from
going rampant and protect its citizens. Some of the laws like The Terrorist and
Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) 1987 and Prevention of Terrorism
Act (POTA) 2002, that were made against it were made as early as 1967 (UAPA),
to having Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), section 113 today talking about the
offence of terrorism. In this blog we will try to briefly discuss the past of
all these acts and then learn about how it is presented in BNS at present.
Let’s start:
Terrorist
and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA), 1987:
TADA,
enacted in 1987, aimed to prevent and cope with terrorist and disruptive
activities. It was an early legislative solution, but also very strict and
effective. Though the “strict” nature of the act was later misused by police
and as the number of terrorist events did not go down, it was later repealed by
POTA.
It defined
Punishment for terrorist acts as:
“Whoever
with intent to overawe the Government as by law established or to strike terror
in the people or any section of the people or to alienate any section of the
people or to adversely affect the harmony amongst different sections of the
people does any act or thing by using bombs, dynamite or other explosive
substances or inflammable substances or lethal weapons or poisons or noxious
gases or other chemicals or by any other substances (whether biological or
otherwise) of a hazardous nature in such a manner as to cause, or as is likely
to cause, death of, or injuries to, any person or persons or loss of, or damage
to, or destruction of, property or disruption of any supplies or services
essential to the life of the community, or detains any person and threatens to
kill or injure such person in order to compel the Government or any other
person to do or abstain from doing any act, commits a terrorist act.”
Its
definition of terrorism was broad and included acts intended to disrupt the
sovereignty and integrity of India and strike terror among the people.
Then came
in Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), 2002 and Unlawful Activities
(Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967
POTA was
enacted in response to several terrorist attacks in the financial capital city
of Mumbai in early 2000s and also including the 1993 Mumbai bombings and the
2001 Parliament attack, where we first saw what it feels like to have one of
your most important institutions targeted in broad daylight. Similar to TADA,
POTA also had to face legal challenges, but at the end was upheld by the
courts. Unfortunately, post-enactment, there were widespread reports of severe
misuse of POTA, contributing to corruption within law enforcement and judicial
systems. It was repealed in 2004. UAPA took its place from there.
POTA and
UAPA have almost identically definitions of terrorism and defines it as:
“Whoever
does any act with intent to threaten or likely to. threaten the unity,
integrity, security or sovereignty of India or with intent to. strike terror or
likely to strike terror in the people or any section of the people in. India or
in any foreign country.”
Terrorism
under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967:
The UAPA
was initially established in 1967 and even today, serves as India’s primary
legal framework for countering terrorism. In 2004, significant amendments were
made to the UAPA, adding a new chapter specifically addressing terrorist
activities.
The UAPA
now includes the definition of a ‘terrorist act’ and provides authorities with
tools to combat threats while safeguarding fundamental rights. UAPA,
encompasses acts that threaten India’s unity, integrity, and security and intimidate
the general public or disturb public order.
UAPA
empowers law enforcement authorities to declare individuals or organizations as
terrorists.
Terrorism Under the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill (BNS)
The Bhartiya
Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS) has brought some significant legal development in
compared to the previous Indian Penal Code (IPC) that it repealed in India.
Among its provisions, it addresses acts of terrorism, aiming to strike a
balance between national security and individual rights. Let’s explore the key
aspects related to terrorism within the BNS:
The BNS
defines terrorism as an act that intends to:
“Section
113(1): A person is said to have committed a terrorist act if he commits any
act in India or in any foreign country with the intention to threaten the
unity, integrity and security of India, to intimidate the general public or a
segment thereof, or to disturb public order by doing an act”
Key ingredients to constituting the offence and highlights of section 113 BNS are as follows:
- Threaten the Unity, Integrity, and Security of the Country: Any action by any person, foreign or local, that undermines the sovereignty or territorial integrity of India falls under this category.
- Intimidate the General Public: Acts that create fear, panic, or terror among the public are considered terrorist acts.
- Using of Bombs and lethal weapons: In this section using of bombs, dynamite and other explosive substance or inflammable material are covered as objects that may be used to inflict fear in public
- Morden Weapons and Instruments: Firearms or other lethal weapons or poisons or noxious gases or other chemicals or substances (whether biological or otherwise), are also covered as instruments of terrorism with the intention to provide a holistic definition of the offence.
- Disturb Public Order: Activities that disrupt, damage or destroy the normal functioning of society or endanger public safety or public and private property fall within the ambit of terrorism. Any act that causes damage or destruction to critical infrastructure in the country or abroad is considered terrorism.
- Holding Government at ransom: any attempt to intimidate/ compel/ extort the government by threatening to kill or injure public functionary / any person or destabilize or destroy political or economic structure is also terrorism. Introducing a pandemic or creation of a public emergency can also be construed as act of terrorism.
Guidelines for investigation:
Unlike
previous legal frameworks, the BNS takes a comprehensive approach. It aligns
with the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA) by broadening the
definition of a ‘terrorist act.’ Specifically, the BNS includes threats to
economic security and monetary stability within its purview. The FIR under
Section 196 BNSS and investigation of the offence under 113 BNS it to be done by
the SHO of concerned Police station. He has additional responsibilities on him
to predict and monitor activities on social medias like spreading of rumours
that may lead to act of terrorism or mob lynching.
All
procedures prescribed for investigation under BNSS are to be followed without
fail and report be shared with higher officials.
Penalties Prescribed:
The BNS imposes severe penalties for those involved in terrorist acts:
- Death Penalty or Imprisonment for Life: Individuals who are found guilty of committing a terrorist act as per Section 113 BNS, where offence has resulted in death of a person, shall face the ultimate punishment of Death Sentence or Life Imprisonment.
- Abetment and Facilitation: Those who conspire, attempt to abet, incite, or knowingly facilitate terrorist actions could be imprisoned for not less than five years, extending to life Imprisonment and shall also be liable to fine.
- Organisers or recruiters: anybody who organises or recruits people for camps to impart training to execute a terrorist act shall be punished with not less than 5 years imprisonment to a maximum of life imprisonment along with fine.
- Members of terrorist organisation: Can be punished for a maximum of imprisonment of life with fine.
- Harbouring a terrorist: This can cost the person harbouring a terrorist who conceals such terrorist a sentence not less than 3-year imprisonment up to a maximum of life imprisonment and also liable to pay fine.
- Possessing property involved in terrorism: any person who is Knowingly possessing a property he has derived or has acquired form committing any terrorist act can be punished with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment along with fine.
- Fine Structure: The proposed fines of Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh for various terrorist acts have been dropped. Now, the courts determine the quantum of the fine.
Conclusion
The
revised BNS Bill broadens the definition of a ‘terrorist act’ to include
threats to economic security and monetary stability of India. It also includes
intimidation of the general public or disturbance of public order in its
purview. Furthermore, the BNS Section 113 leaves the determination of penalties
and fine to the courts acknowledging the economic aspect involved in a
terrorist act, which was neglected for long.
In
summary, these acts have evolved over time, reflecting the changing landscape
of offence of terrorism and the need to balance security measures with
safeguarding individual rights. In my opinion the legislature has tried its
best to cover all relevant aspects of terrorism and have come up with this
section. However, there is still scope for improvement over time. Offences like
cyber terrorism, spreading of false information, gaslighting still do not find
a mention in this holistic definition of offence of terrorism. Though I am
optimistic that over time all the remaining shortcomings of this provision will
be taken care of by the legislature.
I hope to
be living in a society where there is nothing left remotely resembling the act
of terrorism, but until that becomes a reality, we have to ensure that all are
efforts are made towards being prepared to fight against it and to curtail it
as much as we possibly can.
Sources:
https://www.studyiq.com/articles/anti-terror-laws-in-india/
https://www.indiacode.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/15340/1/terrorist_and_disruptive.pdf
https://police.py.gov.in/SOP%20on%20Terrorism%20under%20BNSS.pdf
Old Meets New: A Comprehensive Guide to Investigation Procedures Under Section 176 BNSS
Navigating The Hierarchy: Decoding Delhi Police Officer Ranks
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