FIR should not be lodged against children committing petty offences, says minister

When children are made to stand trial for minor crimes, a lot of psychological trauma happens among the minor offenders and their chance of reformation goes away

MP | 2 Apr 2023 | Kolkata: The state government in collaboration with the West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights (WBCPCR) and UNICEF on Sunday started planning on how to divert children from judicial procedures for allegedly committing petty offences as a means to ease their trauma of going through the legal trial. 

As per the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act of 2015, a child allegedly committing minor offences could be diverted from the regular judicial procedure and rehabilitated with help of social workers by keeping the child with parents or caregivers. 

“FIR should not be lodged against children committing petty offences. They may or may not be sent to childcare institutions. Efforts will be to restore children to their families and link them to various welfare services and other alternatives to detention,” state Women and Child Development and Social Welfare minister Shashi Panja said at the State Consultation on Diversition organised by WBCPCR and UNICEF. 

She added that the police, government officials and other stakeholders should be sensitised first. “When children are made to stand trial for minor crimes, a lot of psychological trauma happens among the minor offenders and their chance of reformation goes away. They often repeat committing similar offences,” the minister said. 

Justice Ananya Bandyopadhyay of Calcutta High Court also urged the magistrates of Juvenile Justice Boards of the districts present at the programme to distinguish the cases involving the children with empathy. State government and UNICEF, with the help of an NGO, started a pilot project in some crime-prone areas of Jalpaiguri, Murshidabad and South 24-Parganas districts to use the provision of ‘diversion’ over ‘detention’ of offenders and a lot more needs to be done. 

“In the past three years, it has been observed that it is not enough to divert the children from police stations and Juvenile Justice Boards. We have to ensure essential services, regular follow-ups and psycho-social support for these children. Hence a comprehensive care plan by the authorities for the child is required,” Mohammad Mohiuddin, Chief of UNICEF West Bengal said. 

Welcoming the initiative to strengthen the implementation of the principle of diversion, Sudeshna Roy, chairperson of WBCPCR said: “It is essential to use diversion from judicial proceedings as a solution in such cases.” 

https://www.millenniumpost.in/bengal/fir-should-not-be-lodged-against-children-committing-petty-offences-says-minister-513789?infinitescroll=1