September 16,2018:
Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA), India’s largest movement that works towards protection of children, today called for a robust protective mechanism for strict execution of provisions aimed at curbing acts of crime against children.
“Even a single slip-up in enforcing the laws can jeopardise the future of many vulnerable children, a sad truth sustained by the innumerable cases of trafficking that have come to light lately , ” said Dr Sampurna Behura, BBA Director for Programmes.
Dr Behura was referring to the recent case where the Mumbai police had caught hold of the man responsible for allegedly sending over 300 girls to the US since 2007, charging Rs 45 lakh for each child. The police investigation has revealed that most of these girls were between the ages of 11 to 16 years. She therefore urged parliamentarians for early passage of the Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill 2018 to prevent such cases.
The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha during recent monsoon session but could not be taken up for discussion in the Rajya Sabha. On becoming a law, it is expected to declare a war on child trafficking and sexual abuse. In view of increased cases of exploitation of human beings, the passage of the bill holds immense importance.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 517 cases of human trafficking were reported from Maharashtra in 2016, the fourth highest in the country. The number of minors trafficked stood at 172. Most of the trafficked victims were subjected to sexual exploitation for prostitution while a considerable number were forced into labour. Significantly, the bill has been drawn in conformity with the international conventions and protocols to prevent these frighteningly rising instances of trafficking.
One of BBA’s significant contributions over the years has been supporting the government in drafting the first version of the bill with the Ministry of Women and Child Development. To support this cause, the organisation along with the Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation (KSCF) organised a nationwide march ‘Bharat Yatra’ in September 2017 to address this issue and urge the government to act on it.
In light of the Muzaffarpur and Deoria shelter home cases, Dr Behura also called for an effective implementation of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2015. The dismal state of child care institutions is a result of non-adherence to the directions in Sampurna Behura vs Union of India PIL. BBA is willing to support government in implementing the same.
The recent case of a 13-year old boy being whipped by the caretaker of a private shelter home in Worli, Mumbai is a demonstration of the loopholes in the existing surveillance mechanism.
These incidents could have been avoided and the lives of the children would have been different had norms of the Juvenile Justice Act were complied with. The Sampurna Behura vs Union of India judgement calls for a social audit of Child Care Institutions every six months to monitor and supervise the implementation of the JJ Act. It also mandates that the states must also make innovative use of information and communication technology not only for the purpose of collecting data and information but also for other issues connected with the JJ Act.
