CM Proposes Stricter Penalties for Crimes Against Women, Kids

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Friday introduced two bills in the Assembly to award stringent punishments, including the death sentence, for offenses committed against women and children in Tamil Nadu.

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The bills will amend the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) 2023 for the state and the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act, 1998. Harassment through digital and electronic means will also be brought under the ambit of the 1998 Act through the amendments that will take effect on the date of notification by the state government.

Introducing the bills, the CM said punishment for heinous crimes against women should remain a deterrent for those who tend to commit such crimes. Though punishment for crimes against women has been defined under the BNS and the TNPHW Act, there is a need for making these punishments more stringent, he said.

While the majority of the proposed amendments were related to increasing the jail term or penalty for various kinds of offenses, the amendments to the TNPHW Act included some other key changes.