NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR PROTECTION OF CHILD RIGHTS (NCPCR) DRAFT GUIDELINES
1.Why in news?
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has come up with draft guidelines on the preliminary assessment of whether certain minors are to be tried under law as adults in particular cases, under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act
2.Juvenile justice act
- Earlier, all children under the age of 18 were considered minors by the law, but through an amendment in 2015, a provision was added to the JJ Act for trying a child in conflict with the law as an adult.
- Under this, a child in the age group of 16-18 years could be tried as an adult in case of heinous offences
- Section 15 (1) of the Act states that the Juvenile Justice Board shall conduct a preliminary assessment to determine whether to try such a child as an adult or a minor
- The Act directs that the Board shall consider the mental and physical capacity of the child for committing the alleged offence, the ability to understand the consequences of the offence, and the circumstances in which the offence was committed
- It states that the Board can take the assistance of experienced psychologists or psychosocial workers or other experts
- The Act also gives a disclaimer that the assessment is not a trial, but is only to assess the capacity of the child to commit and understand the consequences of the alleged offence
- After the assessment, the Board can pass an order saying there is a need to try the said child as an adult and transfer the case to a children’s court with the relevant jurisdiction
- If tried as a minor, the child could be sent to a special home for a maximum of three years
- If tried as an adult, the child can be sentenced to a jail term, except being sentenced to death or life imprisonment without the possibility of release
3.NCPCR guidelines
3.1.Physical capacity of the child:
To determine the child’s ‘locomotor’ abilities and capacities, particularly with regard to gross motor functions such as walking, running, lifting, throwing…such abilities as would be required to engage in most antisocial activities.
3.2.Mental capacity:
To determine the child’s ability to make social decisions and judgments. It also directs assessments pertaining to mental health disorders, substance abuse, and life skills deficits
3.3.Circumstances in which the offence was allegedly committed:
Psychosocial vulnerabilities of the child. This is to include life events, any trauma, abuse, and mental health problems, stating that the offence behaviour is a cumulative consequence of a lot of other circumstances.
3.4.Ability to understand the consequences of the alleged offence:
To determine the child’s knowledge or understanding of the alleged offence’s social, interpersonal and legal consequences
These include what others will say or perceive him, how it might affect his personal relationships and the knowledge of relevant laws, respectively.
4.About NCPCR
- National Commission for Protection of Child Rights is a statutory body constituted under Section 3 of the Commission for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005 to protect the child rights and other related matters in the Country
- The Commission is further mandated to monitor the proper and effective implementation of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012; Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 and Right to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009
- In one of the functions laid down under Section 13 of the CPCR Act, 2005, the Commission has been assigned with the function to examine and review the safeguards provided by or under any law for the time being in force for the protection of child rights and recommend measures for their effective implementation
- The Commission also has the powers of Civil Court trying a suit under Section 14 of CPCR Act, 2005 and Code of Civil Procedure, 1908
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For Mains:
1. What are changes in JJ Act for juvenile offenders and District Magistrates?
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Source:indianexpress, pib
