Implementation of the POCSO Act - Study of Cases of Special Courts in Delhi & Mumbai (2012 - 2015)

Uploaded: over 3 years ago; Last updated: over 2 years ago ; Date of Publication: November-2017

Delhi, Maharashtra

2012 - 2015

English

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

On 14 November 2012, Government of India enacted a long awaited special law to ensure justice to children who are victims of sexual violence and abuse, called the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (the POCSO Act). Since this is the first time such a law has come into force, its implementation is met with challenges posed by increased reporting of cases, lack of trained manpower and support services to deal with child victims, combined with inadequate training and skills on interviewing children, carrying out proper investigation and ensuring speedy trial. Almost three years since its enforcement is a good time to review its implementation and build evidence that can be used to seek improvement and/or appropriate changes.

PDF

Research Report

Official data in the public domain was scanty. The source for the study has mainly been the material available on the courts’ and the National Crime Records Bureau’s websites. The analysis and scripting of the present report was completed when Crime in India 2016 was published. The 2016 data has been weaved into the study wherever possible, and may not be reflected in all Charts and Tables. The available data was limited in as much as it did not cover all the aspects that we would have liked to include to give more soul to this report. Maybe perusal of the courts’ records, especially the witnesses testimonies, would have given further insights into the study, but we did not have access to the same. In order to personalise the study, references have been made to cases handled, and stakeholders interviewed by HAQ and FACSE.