The Indian government is preparing a comprehensive decriminalisation exercise that could reshape the regulatory landscape for businesses across the country. According to senior government officials, approximately 350 additional provisions across nearly 100 Central Acts and 33 ministries have been identified for potential decriminalisation, marking a substantial expansion beyond the ongoing Jan Vishwas II initiative.

Scope and Scale of the Initiative

The proposed exercise represents a significant escalation in the government's efforts to reduce criminal liability for business and compliance-related offences. The focus remains on procedural lapses and technical defaults that currently carry criminal penalties despite their minor nature.

Senior government sources indicate that the newly identified provisions could either be incorporated into an expanded Jan Vishwas II Bill or introduced as a separate legislative package, depending on parliamentary deliberations. "Decriminalisation remains a key reform priority. Around 350 provisions across 33 ministries have been identified beyond what is already part of Jan Vishwas II," a senior government source stated.

Sectoral Coverage and Legislative Focus

The proposed decriminalisation exercise is expected to span multiple sectors, with significant changes identified across textiles, steel, and heavy industries. Key pieces of legislation under review include the Companies Act and the Mines Act, among others.

The focus areas include:

• Licensing requirements and renewals
• Information filing obligations
• Procedural compliance requirements
• Technical defaults in regulatory submissions

Government sources emphasize that these are largely non-financial provisions related to compliance and procedural requirements. "In many cases, non-submission of information or procedural lapses can technically lead to criminal prosecution. The idea is to remove the criminal tag from such provisions," officials explained.

Implementation Strategy and Coordination

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is spearheading this exercise, coordinating extensive inter-ministerial consultations. The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2025, was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 18, 2025, and subsequently referred to a select committee for detailed examination.

Ministry-wise proposals have been shared with DPIIT following multiple inter-ministerial meetings, with sources indicating broad consensus across ministries on the provisions proposed for decriminalisation.

Historical Context and Previous Reforms

The Jan Vishwas reform programme was initially launched to improve ease of doing business by decriminalising minor offences across Central laws. Under Jan Vishwas I, enacted in 2023, 183 provisions across 42 Acts were decriminalised, replacing imprisonment with monetary penalties or administrative measures.

Jan Vishwas II builds on the initial effort and aims to further rationalise around 100 criminal provisions across laws administered by multiple ministries. The current expansion would substantially increase the scope of decriminalisation efforts.

Regulatory Approach and Safeguards

Government sources emphasize that changes are being proposed only where there is agreement among concerned ministries and where regulatory oversight can be maintained through civil penalties or administrative action rather than criminal prosecution. This approach ensures that regulatory compliance remains enforceable while removing the criminal liability aspect for minor defaults.

The exercise maintains focus on provisions where criminal prosecution appears disproportionate to the nature of the violation, particularly in cases involving procedural lapses, information filing delays, or technical compliance issues that do not involve financial irregularities or fraud.

Source: https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/economy/government-readies-wider-decriminalisation-push-beyond-jan-vishwas-ii-13785485.html