Daily Class Notes - Polity Yearly Current Affairs PDF

1 DAILY CLASS NOTES Raftaar Batch BPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS Lecture – 01 Polity Yearly Current Affairs Raftaar Batch BPSC  2...

1 DAILY CLASS NOTES Raftaar Batch BPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS Lecture – 01 Polity Yearly Current Affairs Raftaar Batch BPSC  2 Polity Yearly Current Affairs Criminal law Reforms:- ❖ Context:- India's Parliament enacted new criminal justice reforms, replacing existing legal codes. This signifies a major shift in the country's legal system. ❖ The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Act will replace the colonial-era Indian Penal Code 1860, Code of Criminal Procedure 1973, and Indian Evidence Act of 1872. Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita:- ❖ Remove Sedition (Rajdroh): The BNS removes the offence of sedition. It instead penalises the following: Exciting or attempting to excite secession, armed rebellion, or subversive activities, Encouraging feelings of separatist activities, or Endangering the sovereignty or unity and integrity of India. These offences may involve the exchange of words or signs, electronic communication, or the use of financial means. ❖ Terrorism: Section 113 of the BNS modified the definition of the crime of terrorism to adopt the existing definition under Section 15 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967(UAPA). Raftaar Batch BPSC  3 Punishment for attempting or committing terrorism includes: ✓ Death or life imprisonment, and a fine if it results in the death of a person or ✓ Imprisonment between five years and life, and a fine. ❖ Organised Crime: It includes offences such as kidnapping, extortion, contract killing, land grabbing, financial scams, and cybercrime carried out on behalf of a crime syndicate. Attempting or committing organised crime will be punishable with: ✓ Death or life imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10 lakh, if it results in death of a person, or ✓ Imprisonment between five years and life, and a fine of at least five lakh rupees. ❖ Caste / Race based murder : It adds murder or grievous hurt by five or more people on specified grounds, as an offence. These grounds include race, caste, sex, language, or personal belief. The punishment for such murder is life imprisonment or death. ❖ Sexual offences against women: It increases the threshold for the victim to be classified as a major, in the case of gang rape, from 16 to 18 years of age. It also criminalises sexual intercourse with a woman by deceitful means or making false promises. Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 ❖ Role of Technology: Recognizes electronic evidence in legal proceedings. ❖ Electronic Records: Classified as documents, includes data from devices. ❖ Electronic Oral Evidence: Comprehensive certification for electronic evidence. ❖ Secondary Evidence: Includes admissions and expert testimony. ❖ DNA Evidence: Special provisions for admissibility, support a modern legal framework. Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023:- ❖ Humanising Justice : Emphasises humane treatment in criminal justice. ❖ Police Custody : 5 days with partial authorization during initial custody periods. ❖ Handcuffs Use: Allowed in certain cases. ❖ Medical Examination: Police can request for the accused, including in rape cases. ❖ Fingerprint and Voice Samples: Magistrate can order collection. Raftaar Batch BPSC  4 Women Reservation Act, 2023:- ❖ Context:- Ensures 33% of seats for women in state legislative assemblies and Lok Sabha. ❖ Background:- First introduced in 1996 by the H. D. Deve Gowda administration. Reintroduced in 2008 but never passed until now. Women in The 18th Lok Sabha:- ❖ Candidate Profile: Women constituted 10% (797) of the 8,360 candidates contesting elections in 2024. This is the first time that women candidates’ proportion touched 10% ❖ Representation over the years: First Lok Sabha in 1952: Women made up just 4.41% of the strength of the Lower House. Lowest representation: In the 1971 Lok Sabha, women constituted only 3.51% of the total membership. Peak representation: Women constituted 14.36% of the House in the 17th Lok Sabha of 2019. Raftaar Batch BPSC  5 ❖ International Comparison: Women constitute 46% of MPs in South Africa, 35% in the UK, and 29% in the US. Highlights of the Act:- ❖ Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam: Reserves 33% seats for women in Parliament and legislative assemblies. ❖ New Constitutional Amendments: Article 239AA: Reserves 1/3rd seats for women in Delhi Legislative Assembly. Article 330A: Reserves 1/3rd seats for women in Lok Sabha. Article 332A: Reserves 1/3rd seats for women in state legislative assemblies. Article 334A: Reservation effective after census and delimitation, with rotating seats for women. ❖ Current Status of Women's Representation:- Gujarat: 8% women candidates in 182-member parliament. Himachal Pradesh: Only one woman elected among 67 males. National Average: 8% women in state legislatures. Global Ranking: 144th out of 193 nations in women's parliamentary representation. Uttarakhand's Uniform Civil Code bIll:- Context:- Uttarakhand becomes the first state to pass the Uniform Civil Code bill. What is the Uniform Civil Code? ❖ A set of laws governing personal matters for all citizens, regardless of religion. ❖ Covers marriage, divorce, adoption, inheritance, and succession. ❖ Aims to replace diverse personal laws. ❖ Mandated by Article 44 of the Constitution. Key Highlights of the Uttarakhand 2024 Bill: ❖ Panel Formation: Led by retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Prakash Desai, formed in 2022. ❖ Marriage Laws: The bill mandates the compulsory registration of marriages within 60 days of solemnization. This provision applies to all residents of Uttarakhand, whether marrying within or outside the state. Raftaar Batch BPSC  6 While non-registration of marriages won’t invalidate it, the parties concerned may face a penalty of Rs 10,000. Instances of furnishing false information intentionally would incur a fine of Rs 25,000 and a three-month jail term. No marriage can be dissolved without a court order otherwise it would attract imprisonment for up to 3 years. Bans polygamy and child marriage. Sets marriage age at 18 for women and 21 for men. Equal property rights for sons and daughters. Includes adopted and biological children equally. Bans practices like polygamy and halala. ❖ Live-in Relationships: Any live-in relationship within the state’s jurisdiction will have to be registered compulsorily, regardless of whether the concerned man and woman are residents of Uttarakhand or not. In case, couples in a live-in relationship do not submit their statement, they will be served a notice following which criminal prosecution can be initiated against them. Partners can terminate the relationship only by submitting a formal statement to the same effect. Women deserted by their live-in partners can claim maintenance through the competent court. Children born out of such relationships will be considered legitimate. ❖ LGBTQ+ Community:- The Bill leaves out the members of the LGBTQIA+ community from its ambit and applies only to heterosexual relationships. While it uses gender-neutral terms like “partners”, it defines a live-in relationship specifically as a “relationship between a man and a woman” who cohabit in a shared household through a relationship like marriage. ❖ Exemptions: Scheduled tribes (STs) have been exempted from the purview of the bill. The tribal population in the state, which is around 3%, had been voicing its dissent against UCC in the wake of the special status accorded to them. Raftaar Batch BPSC  7 Jammu and Kashmir Local bodies (Amendment) Bill, 2024:- ❖ Context: The bill, passed by the Lok Sabha, aims to provide reservation to other backward classes (OBCs) in local bodies in Jammu and Kashmir, highlighting changes since the repeal of Article 370. ❖ Key Highlights: OBC Reservation: Introduces reservation for OBCs in panchayats and municipalities to align with national standards. Terminology Change: Replaces 'weak and under-privileged classes (social castes)' with 'other backward classes (OBC)'. Valmiki Community: Adds the Valmiki community to the Scheduled Castes list, granting them 8% reservation. Constitution (Jammu and Kashmir) Scheduled Tribes Order (Amendment) Bill, 2024:- Key Highlights:- ❖ Schedule Tribe Status : The bill particularly focuses on including four ethnic groups in the list of Scheduled Tribes (STs) in Jammu and Kashmir. The ethnic groups are Gadda Brahmin, Koli, Paddari Tribe, and Pahari Ethnic Group”. Current Reservation Policy in J&K ❖ Scheduled Castes (SC): 8% ❖ Scheduled Tribes (ST): 10% ❖ Social Castes: 4%, ❖ Residents along Line of Actual Control/International Border : 4% ❖ Residents in Backward Areas: 10% ❖ Paharis: 4% ❖ Economically Weaker Sections (EWS): 10% ❖ Ex-Servicemen: 6% (horizontal reservation) ❖ Physically Challenged People: 4% Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024:- Context: The Centre introduced the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024, in Parliament to address exam paper leaks and answer sheet tampering across school exams, college entrance tests, and government job applications. Raftaar Batch BPSC  8 Key Highlights: ❖ Transparency and Fairness: The Bill aims to enhance transparency, fairness, and credibility in public exams, assuring youths that their efforts will be fairly rewarded. ❖ Penalties: Individuals involved in leaking exam papers or tampering with answer sheets, in collusion with government officials, face up to 10 years in jail and a fine of Rs 1 crore. ❖ Offences: All offences under the Bill are cognisable, non-bailable, and non- compoundable, allowing police to arrest without a warrant and preventing bail and compromise settlements. ❖ Committee: A National Technical Committee on Public Examinations will be established to develop protocols, IT security systems, and national standards for exam conduct. Covered Exams:- ❖ Union Public Service Commission (civil service exams) ❖ Staff Selection Commission (union ministries and subordinate offices) ❖ Railway Recruitment Boards (Indian Railways jobs) ❖ Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (public sector banks, except SBI) ❖ National Testing Agency (higher education entrance exams)  1 PW Web/App: https://smart.link/7wwosivoicgd4 1 Raftaar Batch BPSC