Juvenile Justice Act

The Juvenile Justice Act was recently in the news due to the Pune Porche Case, in which the accused is a juvenile. This Act deals with juvenile delinquency as well as the care and adoption of a child. Under the Act, there is a special provision in which the juvenile can be tried as an adult for certain heinous crimes. The Act provides for the establishment of Juvenile Justice Board and Child Welfare Committees. The Act also provides statutory status to the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA), which deals with inter-and intra-country adoptions. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) is responsible for the implementation of the Act.

In 2012, a 23-year old woman was assaulted and gang-raped in New Delhi. This case is infamously known as the Nirbhaya Case. There was a public outrage because one of the accused was a minor, and he could not be tried as an adult and would be out in just three years due to the criminal laws of that time. To address such heinous crimes committed by a minor or a juvenile, the Juvenile Justice Act 2015 was enacted which provided that a juvenile aged between 16 and 18 years could be tried as an adult for certain heinous crimes.

The Juvenile Justice Act 2015 is an Act that seeks to address juvenile delinquency, the adoption of children and the care and protection of children in the country.

• This Act aims to provide a framework related to children who are in conflict with the law and for children who are in need of care and protection.
• This Act aims at fulfilling the obligations and commitments made by India as a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and other related international conventions.
• This Act replaced the Juvenile Delinquency Law and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000.
• An amendment to this Act was made in 2021 to streamline the adoption process for faster adoptions and to widen the scope of serious offences under the act.

• This Act categorises offences committed by children in three categories:
  • Petty offences: these are offences for which the maximum punishment under any law is imprisonment up to 3 years
  • Serious offences: these are offences for which the maximum punishment under any law is:
    • minimum imprisonment for a term more than three years and not exceeding seven years
    • maximum imprisonment for a term more than seven years but no minimum imprisonment or minimum imprisonment of less than seven years is provided
  • Heinous offences: these are offences for which the maximum punishment under any law is is imprisonment for seven years or more
• There is a special provision under the Act that allows for the trial of a juvenile as an adult for heinous crimes.
• Juvenile Justice Board: Every State Government shall constitute one or more Juvenile Justice Board for exercising the power and discharge functions related to children under the Act.
  • Composition: a Metropolitan Magistrate or Judicial Magistrate of first class (referred to as the Principal Magistrate of the Board) and two social workers, one of whom should be women.
  • Section 15: In the case of a heinous crime alleged to be committed by a child aged between 16-18 years, the Juvenile Justice Board shall conduct a preliminary assessment with respect to the mental and physical capacity to commit such an offence and other factors such as the ability to understand the consequences of such action and surrounding circumstances.
    • After the assessment, the Board shall decide whether the child shall be tried as an adult or as a child. If the Board decides the said child should be treated as an adult then the Board will transfer the case to the Children's Court, which has the jurisdiction to try such cases.
• Child Welfare Committees(CWCs): The State Government shall constitute one or more Child Welfare Committees in every district by a gazette notification.
  • Composition: a Chairperson and four other members as the State Government deem fit. Out of this, one member should be a woman, and one member should be an expert on matters concerning children.
  • CWCs shall be responsible for ensuring the care, protection, appropriate rehabilitation, or restoration of children in need of care and protection. These children could be lost or abandoned children, sexually abused children, or others. CWCs will be responsible for declaring the child legally free for adoption.
• National Commission for Protection of Rights of Child Rights (NCPCR) which is a statutory body, is responsible for the implementation of the various provisions of the Act.

• Limited Capacity: CWCs and JJBs lack the human and financial resources that are necessary for the discharge of the functions prescribed in the act. They are dependent on the state government or district administration for such resources. Because of this, there is a considerable delay in the process.
• Rising Juvenile Delinquency and Pendency of cases: According to the Crime in India Report by the NCRB, the number of children in conflict with the law increased by 15% in 2019 as compared to the year 2009. Whereas there is a large pendency of cases involving juveniles. The conviction rate has decreased to 43% in 2019 as compared to 52% in the year 2009.
• Undue influence: as witnessed in the recent Pune Porche Case, there was undue influence in the whole process, and the various institutions responsible for the prosecution were under political pressure because the accused juvenile belongs to a rich family. The Act does not have safeguards that could enable the responsible institutions to resist such pressure.
• Maturity, irrespective of age: the core principle of this Act is that the child lacks maturity to comprehend the consequences of committing such crimes. But, due to the changing nature of society in the modern age, there is a need to assess the maturity of the child, irrespective of age. If the child is found to be mature enough by a competent court, then the child should be punished accordingly. However, there is no such provision under the Act.

The Juvenile Justice Act (Care And Protection Of Children Act), 2015 was enacted after deficiencies in the process of dealing with juvenile delinquencies were exposed due to the Nirbhaya Case. In the wake of the recent Pune Porche Case, there is a need to relook at the Act and address the gaps in its implementation. Also, the government should listen to the concerns of civil society and child activists regarding rising juvenile delinquency. The government should examine and scrutinise the Act and take corrective actions after consulting all the stakeholders so that apprehensions of all are taken care of.