Gujarat to enact stricter law against chain snatching

Gujarat government plans to bring in a new Ordinance to make punishment for chain snatchers stringent, making provision for up to 10 years in jail.

“Through Ordinance we seek to amend Section 379 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) to allow jail terms between seven to ten years for chain snatchers, instead of a maximum punishment of three years at present,” Pradeepsinh Jadeja, Minister of State for Home, Gujarat, told reporters on Monday.

As per the provisions of IPC currently, it entails a maximum jail term of three years. This, Jadeja said, was proving to be “ineffective” and the stringent provisions suggested would help improve “safety and security” for the people.

“We will insert two new sub sections - 379(a) and 379(b) - in the IPC Section 379 by way of Ordinance and send it to the Governor for his approval in the coming few days,” the minister said.

As per the suggested sub-section 379(a), those found guilty of chain or purse snatching would face between seven to ten years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 25,000. “An additional three years of jail would be awarded if the person ends up injuring the victim while fleeing the scene of crime,” Jadeja said.

As per the suggested sub section 379(b), if the chain snatching activity leads to killing or injuring the victim, the accused or the person committing criminal activity would face a minimum jail term of seven years or up to ten years and a fine of Rs 25,000, the minister said.

Drug menace

The minister said the state government was planning a pre-emptive stir against rising threat of “drug” menace in the state. “Our aim is that the youth of the state do not get dragged into habit of any sorts. Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad and Special Operations Group is even using private intelligence across educational institutions to track drugs, weeds or any injections,” the minister said.

The move comes after few cases of weed and other drugs were caught by police recently, including weed from college campuses in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar. A team in Jamnagar recently captured a consignment of heroin, Shivanand Jha, DGP, Gujarat, said.

“Our focus is primarily to nab not just retailers or carriers of the drug but to reach the source. In one case we found that drugs were being smuggled into the state from abroad.