Kerala HC dismisses PIL challenging Hindi names to three new laws

Kochi, Aug 19 : The Kerala High Court, on Monday, dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) petition challenging the Hindi names given to three newly enforced criminal laws.

It was the Division Bench of acting Chief Justice A. Muhamed Mustaque and Justice S. Manu that dismissed the PIL filed by an advocate.

Beginning from July 1 this year, the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the Indian Evidence Act were replaced by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA).

The petitioner presented his case by pointing out that the naming of the laws in Hindi violated Article 348 of the Constitution, which mandates that all authoritative texts of laws must be in English.

He also pointed out that confusion might crop up if it’s in Hindi especially for lawyers and citizens in non-Hindi speaking regions, thereby infringing their fundamental rights under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to practice any profession.

The petitioner further pointed out that it also infringes upon the linguistic diversity of the country.

But the counsel for the Centre opposed it and stated that the enactments including scripts and contents are in English and gave out examples of Prasar Bharati Act and the Lokpal Bill which are Hindi names, and after further consideration, it dismissed the lawyer’s PIL.