The report from Pendency to Protection: Achieving the Tipping Point to Justice for Child Victims of Sexual Abuse, released by Centre for Legal Action and Behaviour Change (C-LAB) for Children, mentions that a substantial amount of POCSO cases which are pending are more than a decade old.
What do the reports say?
The reports say that the cases whose ages are approximately in the time range between six and ten years account for up to 54% of the total pendency. The cases which have been pending for about five years take up 14%, and the four-year cases take up 13% of the share.
According to The Times of India, the Delhi courts were handling 2,075 POCSO cases as of Dec 2, which have remained unsolved for six to ten years. This emphasises the amount of delay faced by the child survivors despite the expansion of special courts and faster disposal mechanisms.
'Justice delayed is justice denied'
India has 35,434 POCSO cases pending for six to ten years, while Delhi alone holds up to 2,075 cases. Delhi recorded 1,757 FIRs and 1,445 charge sheets, with 1,892 cases registered for trial in 2023. There are 16 fast-track courts in Delhi, out of which 11 are functional as POCSO courts.
Vineet Dahiya, additional public prosecutor in Rohini Court, mentioned to TOI, “The only way out can be the institution of more such courts which prioritise the effective disposal of POCSO cases.” The report recommends the setting up of 600 additional ePOCSO courts across the country to clear pending cases within four years at an approximate cost of Rs 1,977 crore, out of which Delhi receives Rs 13.3 crore, utilising the Nirbhaya Fund.
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The former counsel for the Delhi Commission for Women, Kajal Sangha, mentioned that the equitable placement of courts is as important as increasing the capacity. She emphasised the ancillary issues and the fundamental challenges that they have to face as a result of the inadequate number of courts.
