Vrinda Gaur, Dr Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, Lucknow
ABSTRACT
This article is an examination of the various archaic laws that have turned obsolete and no lower serve a constructive and prolific purpose in society. It sheds light upon the initiative taken by the government to repeal these laws and highlights the role played by the law commission in defining the redundancy of such legislations.
The central question subject to analysis is why is there a need to amend or repeal such laws and what are the most influential agents that may assist in bringing about such change. It is important to address this question because institutions that are responsible for bringing about such change, though acting in the right direction, are portraying a very lackadaisical attitude. In this article, we take the instance of the BJP government. The government promised to repeal such obsolete laws if it come to power in 2014. After coming to power, although a bill was where the government promised to repeal more than a thousand pieces of legislation, it was only after a long battle of five years, that it was able to discard all such laws. The application of such obsolete laws leads to a gross miscarriage of justice as they are not at par with the prevailing requirements of society. Therefore it is imperative to question such a lackadaisical implementation to prevent the coming generations from facing a similar predicament. Probably, five or six decades down the line, a similar situation with regards to the redundancy of laws is likely to arise. Civil society along with the various institutions like the legislature, judiciary and various independent organisations should be prompt to take action in the right direction.
