A Delhi court convicting a man in a child sexual assault case barely 10 months after the crime, following the completion of the police probe within 10 days, was among the success stories of India's three new criminal laws that complete two years on Tuesday, according to officials.
The case related to the aggravated sexual assault of a two-year-old girl in Delhi's Bawana area in June 2025. Police registered an FIR immediately after receiving information from the hospital and launched an investigation under the new criminal law framework.
As the offence carried a punishment of more than seven years' imprisonment, investigators conducted a mandatory forensic inspection of the crime scene under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.
Biological samples were collected, medical evidence was documented, and witness statements were recorded, while the forensic material was sent to the Rohini Forensic Science Laboratory for scientific examination.
The investigation was completed within 10 days, and the charge sheet was filed on July 7, 2025, within the prescribed timeline.
The court framed charges within a month on July 30, 2025. During the trial, the prosecution relied on medical evidence, forensic reports, eyewitness testimony and documentary evidence to establish an unbroken chain of circumstances, while the accused did not produce any defence witnesses.
On April 4, 2026, the Rohini court convicted the accused under the relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
It sentenced him to 20 years' rigorous imprisonment, imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 and awarded Rs 10 lakh as compensation to the victim. The court held that the prosecution had established the accused's guilt through "credible oral, documentary, medical, and forensic evidence" and found the chain of evidence to be "complete and trustworthy".
The case is among the success stories of the new laws -- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam that complete two years on Tuesday.
The three laws, which came into force on July 1, 2024, replaced the British-era Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and Indian Evidence Act, ushering in the most significant overhaul of India's criminal justice system since Independence.
The new legal framework places greater emphasis on scientific and evidence-based investigation by mandating forensic examination of crime scenes in serious offences, expanding the use of technology and electronic records, and prescribing timelines for various stages of criminal proceedings.
The laws also seek to complete the criminal justice process -- from registration of an FIR to a Supreme Court verdict -- within three years.
Officials say the Delhi case reflects the shift envisaged under the new criminal laws from witness-centric investigations to forensic-led policing, where prompt investigation, scientific evidence and coordinated efforts by police, forensic experts, medical authorities and prosecutors are expected to strengthen criminal justice delivery while reducing delays