This is a short article that analyses if India is in violation of the Child Right’s Convention after the recent changes in its juvenile justice system following the much publicized and brutal Delhi Gang Rape case.
The United Nations Convention on Child Rights defines a child as any human being under the age of 18 years and thereby forbids any capital punishment inflicted on them. Article 37 (a) obliges all the member countries to prohibit as well as eliminate corporal punishment, including any other form of punishment that is cruel and degrading in nature for children below 18 years.
The increased public pressure post the horrific Delhi Gang rape case (Nirbhaya case) led to amendment to the Juvenile Justice (Care and protection of Children) Act, 2000. The amended act Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 proposes the trial of juveniles in the age group of 16 to 18 years, who are involved in horrifying crimes and offences.
India ratified the convention in the year 1992, and after introducing these new amendments to the Justice Juvenile Act, 2015 it is contravening the said part of UN Convention by not treating all children equally as mandated, under the age of 18. Thus, the amended act stands in complete violation to the UN Convention on Child Rights.
The need of the hour is to create a reformative environment for adolescentwa; but the Act has been criticized and opposed by several women rights groups, NGOs working on child rights, Pro-child Network etc. on the ground that it is disadvantageous to the rights of children especially from poor societies or illiterate families.
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