India, Sept. 20 -- The Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP) returned to power for a third consecutive term under Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2024, despite the narrower electoral mandate, the BJP-led government signalled its intent to build upon the policy foundations laid in its previous terms.

The most significant legislative shift came into effect on July 1, 2024, with the implementation of three new criminal laws - the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, and Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, 2023. These statutes replace colonial-era laws that had governed India's penal, procedural, and evidentiary framework for over a century.

A separate legislative push has decriminalised over 180 provisions across 42 central...