They run away from unlivable children homes

Reformation can happen only in a conducive environment, say activists

While a juvenile who was involved in the brutal gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old will be tried in a juvenile justice court, legal experts say implementation of the Juvenile Justice Act is way below expectations.

The JJ Act, which aims to prevent juvenile delinquency and reform offenders, has not been able to achieve its goals, as was evident from a 2010 Supreme Court observation: “The Act has been made a mockery.”

According to official statistics, over 850 juveniles were allegedly involved in rape cases in 2010, up from 399 cases in 2001. Also, kidnapping and abduction cases against juveniles have risen from 79 to 391 in the same period.

Official statistics say crime committed by juvenile suspects was 1.1 per cent of the total crime committed in the country in 2011.

Activists working at reform homes say more needs to be done to ensure that juveniles are reformed.

Bharati Ali of HAQ Centre for Child Rights says living conditions in observation homes and special homes have improved over the years, and are being monitored both by the supervision committee of observation homes as well as the juvenile justice committee of the Delhi High Court.

“But the homes should be better ventilated and wall colours must be changed to lighter shades, which help remove depression. Children who are not released do create problems, but on the whole the situation has improved,” says Ali.

Recently, a doctor was removed after some boys filed a complaint, which suggests that the complaint mechanism is effective and JJ boards are listening to children. According to activists, the situation in Delhi is far better compared to other states, where separate homes for children do not exist. But there is scope for improvement.

Ali says people who are recruited as probation officers do not have any training under the Probation of Offenders Act.

“In fact, we lack probation services for juveniles completely. We want to ape the US, but we forget that the US invests heavily in probation services,” she says.

Counselling is provided to children who are attending the drug addiction centre Sahyog, and a few others run through NGOs. But this is not mandatory for all cases. “Right now, only those cases for which the JJ board feels the need are marked for counselling. There is also no follow-up of cases once the board closes them,” says Ali.

Others point out that there are no vocational training options to provide skill training to juveniles to lead a better life. Some corporates have come forward to train and employ juveniles.

A recent study done by Prayas Observation Home for Boys and the community medicine department of Maulana Azad Medical College found a strong association between drug abuse and crime among adolescents. The study found that prevalence of drug use among boys before coming to the observation home was between 60 and 70 per cent, which led to criminal activities.

Lawyer and child rights activist Anant Asthana says neglect is the main reason that has led to an increase in juvenile crime.

“The Delhi government is yet to set up district child protection units, which are mandated by law.  There is also absence of a dedicated police unit for juveniles,” he says.

He adds that most juveniles are getting more aggressive instead of getting reformed because abuse, violence and taking drugs are common in these homes, and this needs to change soon to protect children.