Decolonizing criminal law: a critical appraisal

The paper is prepared to argue the condition of decolonizing the field of criminal law – a field which is particularly important for being the first colonial transplant in this subcontinent. To put it another way, this paper is an attempt to locate the colonial elements that can be found in the Penal Code 1860 and to give a way forward to decolonizing such elements in the socio-political milieu of the twenty first century. It therefore explores the colonial origin of modern criminal law in India, which is followed by tracing out importance as well as the ways of decolonizing it.