The Supreme Court has directed the Central Government to establish dedicated courts for Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) cases on a “top priority” basis. The directive was issued by a Bench comprising Justices Bela M Trivedi and Justice P B Varale, who noted that due to the insufficient number of exclusive POCSO courts, statutory timelines for concluding trials under the Act were not being followed.
The Bench emphasized the need for both the Union and State Governments to take urgent steps to not only sensitise officials involved in the investigation of POCSO cases but also ensure the creation of exclusive courts to handle such cases expeditiously.
Additionally, the Court reiterated the requirement of filing charge sheets and completing trials within the time limits prescribed under the POCSO Act.
The Court observed that while most states, supported financially by the Centre, had complied with earlier directions to establish dedicated POCSO courts, states like Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha, Maharashtra, and a few others still require more such courts due to high case pendency.
This development came in a suo motu matter concerning the alarming increase in child sexual abuse cases. The Court had earlier appointed senior advocates V Giri and Uttara Babbar as amici curiae to collect and submit detailed, state-wise information on the status of POCSO courts.
In its order, the apex court also directed that in districts where pending POCSO cases exceed 300, at least two designated courts must be established. It clarified that its earlier directive from July 2019, mandating one special court in each district with more than 100 FIRs under the POCSO Act, referred specifically to exclusive courts handling only such cases.
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