In a significant judicial observation, the Jharkhand High Court on Monday addressed a serious misprint in the Universal LexisNexis edition of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), a crucial compilation of Indian statutory laws. Justices Ananda Sen and Subhash Chand took suo motu cognizance of the error related to Section 103(2), which addresses lynching.
The accurate wording of Section 103(2), as legislated, states: "When a group of five or more persons acting in concert commits murder on the ground of race, caste or community, sex, place of birth, language, personal belief or any other similar ground, each member of such group shall be punished with death or with imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine." However, the edition in question mistakenly records this as "any other ground" instead of "any other similar ground."
The bench emphasized that this seemingly minor discrepancy could lead to significant legal misinterpretations and have serious implications for the delivery of justice. Consequently, the court has directed the publisher to issue a corrigendum in both national and regional newspapers to promptly correct this oversight.
Ritu Kumar, president of the Jharkhand High Court Advocates Association, underscored the urgency and seriousness with which the court addressed this mistake. The publisher has been formally notified and is expected to respond accordingly.
Adding to the legal discourse, Mohammad Shadab Ansari, a lawyer who has represented lynching victims, pointed out that the incorrect phrasing could broadly interpret the grounds for lynching, potentially diluting the specificity intended by the law, such as in cases of property disputes. This error, he emphasized, could have far-reaching consequences in the interpretation and application of the law.
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