The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 was enacted by the Government of India in compliance with the recommendations of the Forty-First Report of the Law Commission of India in view of the basic considerations that ‘an accused person should get a fair trial in accordance with the accepted principles of natural justice’, ‘delay in investigation and trial should be avoided’ and ‘procedure should be simple and ensure fair deal to the poorer sections of the society’. Primarily the Code of Criminal Procedure is an adjective law of procedure. The Code of Criminal Procedure aims to provide a scheme for the punishment of offenders against the substantive Criminal Law, e.g., the Indian Penal Code. These two Codes should be read together. The Code also provides machinery for punishments of offences under other Acts. Moreover, certain provisions of the Code relating to prevention of offences and maintenance proceedings reveals that the Code of Criminal Procedure also share the qualities of a substantive law.
