The POCSO Act
The POCSO Act
The POCSO Act (Protection of Children from Sexual
Offences Act) was enacted in 2012 by the Parliament of India to protect
children aged less than 18 from sexual assault, sexual abuse, sexual
harassment, and pornography²³. The Act defines a child as any person below
eighteen years of age¹. The Act is gender-neutral and recognizes that boys can
be victims of sexual violence as well¹. The Indian Penal Code does not
recognize that sexual assault can be committed on boys¹.
The Act mandates that investigation in the cases is to
be completed in two months (from the date of registration of FIR) and trial in
six months³. The Act also increased the scope of reporting sexual crimes
against children¹.
The POCSO Act (Protection of Children from Sexual
Offences Act) specifies the following punishments:
- Abetment
(encouragement) of child sexual abuse is an offence.
- A
violation of the POCSO Act carries a maximum punishment of life imprisonment
and in some cases death penalty.
- Those who
use a child for pornographic purposes should be punished with imprisonment up
to five years and a fine. In case of a second or subsequent conviction, the
punishment would be up to seven years and a fine.
- The
punishment for ‘Penetrative Sexual Assault’ is a minimum of 10 years. In the
case of a child below the age of 16 years, the person will be punishable with
the minimum imprisonment of 20 years to life, along with fine.
Here are some other laws related to child
protection in India:
1.
The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children)
Act, 2015
2.
The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986
3.
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education
Act, 2009
4.
The National Policy for Children, 2013
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