Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday, 10 July 2026, told the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in Mumbai that the rate of property recovery for complainants has risen under the new criminal laws that replaced India's colonial-era legal framework in July 2024.

Addressing the ongoing Monsoon Session 2026, Fadnavis stated — in both English and Marathi — that the नवीन फौजदारी कायद्यांमुळे फिर्यादीला मालमत्ता परत मिळण्याच्या प्रमाणात वाढ ('under the new criminal laws, the rate at which complainants receive their property back has increased'). The remarks signal that Maharashtra is tracking implementation outcomes of the landmark legal transition and presenting them before the legislature.

Context

In December 2023, Parliament passed three laws — the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam — to replace the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the Indian Evidence Act respectively. All three came into force on 1 July 2024. The BNSS, in particular, introduced procedural provisions intended to expedite the return of seized property to victims and complainants.

The overhaul was framed by the central government as a move away from a colonial-era punitive framework toward one that centres victim rights and time-bound justice. State governments were tasked with operationalising the new codes and monitoring their on-ground impact.

Policy Backdrop

Property restitution to complainants has historically been a slow process under the old Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), often delayed by prolonged trials and procedural bottlenecks. The BNSS introduced clearer timelines and provisions that allow courts to order interim return of property to rightful owners even while a case is under trial.

State governments across India have been directed to compile and report implementation metrics during legislative sessions as part of a national monitoring framework for the criminal law transition. Maharashtra's presentation before the assembly represents one of the more formal instances of a state government placing such data on legislative record.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary beneficiaries of improved property recovery rates are crime victims and complainants — individuals whose assets were seized as part of criminal investigations or court proceedings. Faster restitution reduces the economic hardship that complainants, particularly from lower-income groups, face during prolonged legal processes.

Law enforcement agencies, including the Maharashtra Police, are key operational stakeholders, as the speed of property return depends heavily on how efficiently investigating officers complete documentation and courts process applications. Lawyers and legal aid organisations working with victims also stand to benefit from clearer procedural norms under the BNSS.

What's Next

The Monsoon Session 2026 is expected to see further discussion on Maharashtra's implementation of the new criminal codes, potentially including data on case disposal rates and victim compensation. At the national level, central review meetings are likely to aggregate state-wise metrics, with Maharashtra's performance forming part of a broader assessment of how effectively the July 2024 legal transition has served victims across the country.

If Maharashtra's property recovery trends are formally tabled as a report, they could serve as a benchmark for other states still calibrating their implementation of the BNSS, strengthening the case for victim-centric criminal procedure reform as a measurable governance outcome.