ABSTRACT
The Juvenile Justice system is at the forefront of addressing the specific needs of young offenders by focusing on rehabilitation rather than punishment. In India, the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, was a dramatic change from previous laws like the Juvenile Justice Act of 2000, as it provided for the trial of juveniles aged 16-18 as adults in cases of heinous offenses. This development is an indication of India’s effort to weigh child rights against public safety.
Worldwide, juvenile justice systems differ immensely. Developed countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom focus on rehabilitation using systematic programs, whereas developing countries are confronted with resource shortages and infrastructure due to limited resources and infrastructure. In underdeveloped countries, juvenile justice systems tend to be underfinanced, resulting in poor care and rehabilitation centers. India, being a developing nation, works towards harmonization of its juvenile justice system with global standards like the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, butis plagued by implementation gaps between states.
In comparison, India’s system is care and protection-oriented, like developed countries, but does not have the strong infrastructure of nations such as Japan or Germany. Underdeveloped countries tend to use community-based solutions because of limited resources. The Indian system’s rehabilitation focus is in line with international trends, but issues such as overcrowding in correctional facilities and stigma from society remain.
The paper seeks to critically examine the development of India’s juvenile justice system, its congruence with global standards, and the unevenness in its implementation in varying socio-economic environments, and present suggestions for possible reforms towards a more just and efficient system.
INTRODUCTION-
The juvenile justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 is the base law that governs the juvenile justice system in India.
In the layman terms, a child is considered juvenile who is below the age of 18 years of age and has done something contradictory to the law.
This specific Act focuses on providing basic proper care, protection, development, treatment and social regeneration of the accused in different situations by adapting the child to a friendly approach.
Compared to adults, the young ones are subjected to less rigorous punishment for the criminal offences that they do because often they are ignorant on the consequences and do not have the ill motive that is doli incapax or not capable of causing any harm doing a criminal offence.
It is believed that an individual child cannot form the necessary criminal intention to commit an offence. And if the statistics are analyzed most of the juvenile offences are committed by children who live in underprivileged neighborhoods with deplorable living conditions, unsafe environments, insufficient education, difficult survival context and other reasons of the same.
The primary task of the Juvenile justice system in India is that children must not be prosecuted in ordinary courts. Legislations for juveniles are enacted so that they are corrected in every way. The majority of the children who have committed any offence belong to the poor or illiterate families. The juvenile justice system in India emphasizes the education of the children rather than punishing them. The trial of the children is founded on non-penal treatment by way of social control organs like observation homes, special homes and special schools.