The Rajya Sabha on April 2, 2026, passed the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2026, by voice vote, completing the parliamentary approval of India's largest-ever decriminalisation exercise. The Lok Sabha had cleared the Bill the previous day on April 1. The legislation amends 80 Central Acts to decriminalise 717 minor offences, replacing criminal penalties with civil and administrative enforcement across 23 ministries.
Background
The Jan Vishwas Bill 2026 builds on the original Jan Vishwas Act of 2023, which decriminalised 183 offences across 42 Acts. The expanded scope follows recommendations from the Select Committee chaired by Shri Tejasvi Surya, which examined the earlier 2025 version and recommended broadening coverage to include 80 Acts and over 1,000 provisions for rationalisation.
India's regulatory environment has long been criticised for criminalising minor procedural and technical defaults — such as delayed filings, non-maintenance of records, and administrative oversights — with imprisonment provisions that deterred entrepreneurship and compliance. The World Bank's Ease of Doing Business parameters and multiple government committees had flagged this as a barrier to business growth.
Key Provisions
The Bill introduces a multi-tiered reform framework:
Decriminalisation of 717 provisions: Criminal penalties, including imprisonment, are removed for minor, technical, and procedural defaults. These are replaced with monetary civil penalties or administrative sanctions.
Graded enforcement mechanism: First contravention attracts an advisory notice; second contravention draws a formal warning; subsequent violations incur civil monetary penalties. This proportionate response system replaces the binary criminal/non-criminal approach.
Sectoral coverage: Key Acts amended include the Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940, Pharmacy Act 1948, Food Safety and Standards Act 2006, Clinical Establishments Act 2010, and provisions across labour, environment, commerce, and industry legislation.
784 total provisions amended: Beyond the 717 decriminalised provisions, 67 additional provisions are rationalised to simplify compliance requirements and improve ease of living for citizens.
Multi-ministerial coordination: The Bill represents a consolidated reform effort involving 23 Central ministries, ensuring consistency across regulatory frameworks.
Implications for Practitioners
The Jan Vishwas Bill 2026 will fundamentally alter the compliance advisory landscape. Corporate counsel must now reassess risk matrices for regulatory defaults that were previously classified as criminal offences but will now attract civil consequences.
For healthcare and pharmaceutical companies, the decriminalisation of offences under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act and Food Safety Act significantly reduces the personal liability exposure of directors and compliance officers for procedural lapses. However, practitioners should note that serious offences involving public health and safety remain criminally punishable.
Litigation arising from pending prosecutions for offences now decriminalised will require careful evaluation. Defence counsel should examine whether the Bill's provisions apply retrospectively to ongoing proceedings for minor defaults — a question likely to generate interpretive litigation.
The graded enforcement model also creates a new compliance documentation requirement: businesses must maintain records of advisories and warnings received to track their enforcement history and anticipate escalating penalties.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the Jan Vishwas Bill 2026 apply to ongoing prosecutions for minor offences?
The Bill's provisions regarding retrospective application to pending cases will depend on the specific transitional clauses in the enacted legislation and whether the decriminalisation creates a more beneficial regime under Section 6 of the General Clauses Act, 1897. Accused persons in pending prosecutions for now-decriminalised offences should seek legal counsel on discharge applications.
Which sectors are most affected by the decriminalisation?
Healthcare, pharmaceuticals, food processing, and small-scale manufacturing face the largest impact, as Acts governing these sectors — including the Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940, Food Safety Act 2006, and Pharmacy Act 1948 — have historically criminalised minor regulatory defaults. Directors and compliance officers in these sectors will see reduced personal liability exposure for procedural lapses.