(New Delhi)Numbers of juveniles committing serious crimes have seen a significant growth in India in past few years. There has been a long going debate over whether Juvenile Justice Act should be amended and juvenile age should be decreased or not. Where some are strongly supporting the amendment, others are looking for the different solutions to stop crimes by Juveniles.Recently, two different views on the long-going debate show the kind of environment in India over the issue.
Amend Juvenile Justice Act: NCW chairperson
Pressing for a debate on the issue of juveniles who commit rape, National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Mamta Sharma called for amending the Juvenile Justice Act.
"Forty-five percent of rapes are committed by juveniles, and by sending them to correctional homes, we are just encouraging them... Until juveniles are brought under the purview of law, I do not think there will be a change in the situation," Sharma said during an interaction at the Indian Women's Press Corps (IWPC) in New Delhi.
"There is a need for an amendment in the Juvenile Justice Act now... This is because times have changed over the past 20 years," she added.
Sharma, however, added that the issue is "debatable" and said there be proper consultation.
"To think that four people sit together and talk about amendment is not correct. It is a technical issue and needs to be looked at in a social context," she added.
Quoting the Dec 16, 2012 Delhi gang rape case, Sharma said despite the victim herself stating that the juvenile was the most "brutal", he was spared based on a mere school certificate.
"I believe that if there were proper investigation and tests, it may have been proved that the boy is not a juvenile. And even if he was, I believe that in such cases there should be an amendment in the act and the accused should be punished," she said.
Sharma added that the minors who commit such crimes should be sent to reform houses and schools where they live a "hardened" life and are given "proper counselling".
Stating the importance of sex education, she said children aged 16 these days are "fully grown up" and need to be made aware.
"... Initially when families used to live in a joint set-up, children were made aware by grandparents. But now, in a nuclear set-up, parents don't have time... so in such a scenario, I feel that sex education is a must and will only prove to be helpful," she said.
Reconsider decreasing age of juvenile: Experts
There is a need to reconsider the decision to allow treatment of juvenile offenders as adults and instead look for solutions within the existing juvenile justice system, experts said.
Speaking at a panel discussion on "government's efforts towards juvenile crime prevention and changes required in the law", the experts said,"Juvenile's involvement in the acts of 'adult' crime such as murder and rape does not imply maturity. On the contrary, it is direct evidence of vulnerability of juveniles to reckless behaviour".
"It is important for the government to understand that by decreasing the adult age group, it cannot decrease the number of criminal cases in the country. Once the juveniles are dealt under the criminal justice system, the children will turn more worse psychologically and are likely to commit crime again," said Ved Kumari, an eminent expert on juvenile justice law and ex-chairperson of Delhi Judicial Academy.
According to a recent ministry of women and child development proposal, there should be provisions in the Juvenile Justice Act, 2000 to allow the Juvenile Justice Board to transfer juveniles between 16 and 18 years alleged to have committed murder, rape, acid attacks and other serious crimes, to the adult criminal justice system.
"It is a misconception that juvenile crime rate is very high and more than 50 percent of sexual offences are being committed by juveniles in the age group of 16 to 18 years," said Athiya Bose, an activist for the welfare of juveniles.
She said once a juvenile faces the adult justice system, there are less chances of their not committing crime in the near future because of the harsh way they will be dealt with.
"Studies from the western nations have already suggested that such initiatives are a failure and it becomes difficult for children to come back from the trauma that they suffer under the adult justice system," Bose said.
Eminent lawyer Vrinda Grover said: "The juvenile justice law already is a perfect way to improve the mind set of the juveniles committing crime. In many cases, it has improved the mind set of juveniles and converted them into better men.
"However, if the adult age group is decreased to 16, there are less chances the juveniles committing crime can be corrected," she said.