INTRODUCTION

On 1st December 2015, the Rajya Sabha passed one of the most controversial bills, The
Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) Bill, 2015 popularly referred as the JJ Bill.
The decision comes against the backdrop of the Supreme Court rejecting the plea
against release of the juvenile offender in December 2012 gang rape case. The new Bill
was passed amidst widespread opposition from some members of the civil society,
politicians and Members of Parliament. The Bill seeks to replace the Juvenile Justice
(Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000. It tries to address children in conflict with
law and children in need of care and protection.
The most contended aspect of the bill is the provision for treating the law offending
children aged between sixteen and eighteen years as adults. Thus, the children accused
of crimes such as rape, murder, etc. will be tried under the Indian Penal Code just like
adults.

BACKGROUND
After the Nirbhaya Case in 2012, there was a massive protest all over the country with
people demanding the age of juvenile to be lowered. It was found that one of the accused
of the incident was only a few months away from attaining the age of majority and was
therefore tried by the juvenile court. This led to a huge uproar among the public
demanding stringent punishment for the juvenile involved in such heinous crime.
Subramaniam Swamy filed PIL in the Supreme Court for trying the juvenile as an adult
in a court. This made the UPA government initialled the process of amending the law
related to juveniles. Looking to the rising level of juvenile crimes, the Women and Child
Development Minister Smt Maneka Sanjay Gandhi said there was a need to introduce
this new law. The government felt that the existing Juvenile Justice Act, 2000 is facing
issues with respect to implementation and procedural delays. The new bill is aimed to
remove all such discrepancies by acting as a deterrent for the juvenile offenders.

SALIENT FEATURES OF THE BILL

The Juvenile Justice Act of 2000 prescribes the maximum punishment of three years
detention in a juvenile home irrespective of the nature of the offence. However, the new
bill seeks to segregate the adolescents in the 16 to 18 age group by categorising them into
petty, serious and heinous offences by treating the juveniles accused of heinous offences
as adults. For the first time, petty, serious and heinous offences based on provisions of
IPC have been clearly defined in the said bill which provides that (i) a heinous offence is

one for which the minimum punishment is seven years of Imprisonment under any
existing law. (ii) Imprisonment between three to seven years falls under the category of
serious offence and, (iii) any offence for which maximum punishment is three years is a
petty offence. Currently, the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act,
2000 only lays down the framework of dealing with children who are in conflict with law
and children in need of care and protection. The 2015 bill replaces the existing 2000 Act
by strengthening the provisions of the Act and laying down the procedures to deal with
both categories of children. The Bill makes a provision for the constitution of Juvenile
Justice Boards (JJBs) and Child Welfare Committees (CWCs) in each district for dealing
with these children. Both the bodies must have at least one woman member. The JJB
will conduct a preliminary inquiry assessing the mental and physical capacity of the
child and his ability to understand the consequences of his act to determine whether a
juvenile offender is to be sent for rehabilitation or be tried as an adult. The CWC, on the
other hand, will determine institutional care for children in need of care and protection.
Another striking feature of the bill is that the bill makes provision with respect to several
other offences not adequately included under any other law. These include punishment
for cruelty against children, trafficking of children, selling narcotic substance to
children, kidnapping and abduction of children, etc. Various measures of rehabilitation
and social reintegration have been given in the bill for institutionalisation and noninstitutionalization of children. The institutional care includes services such as
education, nutrition, skill development, counselling, vocational training, etc. to help the
children in their overall development. Under the non-institutional care, options such as
sponsorship, foster care to provide the children with family environment and
supervision of these children were included. It is assumed that if such law comes into
effect, it will act as a deterrent for children involved in heinous crimes of murder and
rape.

IMPACT OF THE NEW BILL

Despite these provisions, the bill continues to remain a matter of dispute. It is argued by
many child activists that the Bill violates Article 14 (Right to Equality), and 21 (requiring
that laws and procedures are fair and reasonable) of the Constitution. Further treating
16-18-year-olds as an adult is against the UN Conventions on the Rights of the Child,
which specifies all signatory countries to treat every child under the age of 18 years as
equal. Some argue that the current law does not act as a deterrent for juveniles involved

in heinous offences. A more reformative approach is required as it will reduce the

chances of repeating offences.
The activists also contend that the Constitution also provides for treating vulnerable
sections of society with special care. These include women and children. Therefore, the
children in the age group of 16-18 who are extremely sensitive require greater care and
protection and hence subjecting them to the adult judicial system will go against the
Constitutional provisions of India. Also, the bill provides for disproportionate
punishment with respect to the gravity of offences. For instance, the punishment for
selling a child is lower than that for offering intoxicating or narcotic substances to a
child.
Thus, the activists including many politicians and lawyers are of the view that the new
Bill suffers from many loopholes. While the 2000 Act adheres to the UN Convention as
well as Constitution, 2015 Bill fails to comply with the necessary requirements. They
have described the new law as barbaric and uncivilised and, therefore, needs to be
amended.

CONCLUSION
Thus, on the one hand, the 2015 Bill is considered as a means to address the rise in
juvenile crimes. On the other hand, the Bill is referred as violative of the Constitution.
However, I believe that the debates on how the parliamentarians have been barbaric in
treating children like adults are erroneous and inaccurate since the proposed law aims
at dealing the cases of juveniles keeping in mind their best interest and rehabilitation.
Also, the bill aims to strike out a balance between children alleged and found to be in
conflict with law and children in need of care and protection by taking into account their
basic needs through proper care, protection, development, treatment, social reintegration, by adopting a child-friendly approach. Thus, it is positive step for
preventing the children from committing crimes and must receive the approval of the
President as soon as possible to become law.

The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill was passed by Rajya Sabha in
the Winter Session and signed by the President into Act on January 4, 2016. According to
the passed bill, 16 year olds, involved in heinous crimes will now be prosecuted as adults.
Here is all you need to know about the Juvenile Act and Bill:

The act is a legal framework for juvenile justice in India, against those juveniles who
have broken laws

According to the Juvenile Act, any criminal who is not 18 years of age is considered
to be a juvenile and is tried in the juvenile court. The Juvenile Justice Bill demands
that juveniles between the age of 16 and 18 should be tried as adults for heinous
crimes

According to the present Act, the emphasis of juvenile detention is not supposed to
be on punishment, but on rehabilitation

The bill also seeks to establish Juvenile Justice Boards (JJB) and Child Welfare
Committees in each district of the country. It also demands that JJB will decide
whether a juvenile accused will be sent to a rehabilitation home or be tried as an
adult

Under this law, juveniles are kept in a protective home and are provided vocational
training, including cooking and stitching, to give them something to carry on after
they have left the home

Under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, the
maximum sentence for a juvenile who has broken the law is three years in a
protective home, no matter how serious the crime is

The law also says that youthful offenders cannot be sentenced to death or life in
prison

The first legislation on juvenile justice in India came in the year 1850 which required
that children between the ages of 10-18 years, who are convicted in courts, should
be provided vocational training as a part of their rehabilitation process

This Act was further amended in 2006 and 2011 and is now known as the Juvenile
Justice (Care and Protection) Act, 2000

According to the Act, "No newspaper, magazine, news-sheet or visual media shall
disclose the name, address or school, or any other particulars calculated to lead to
the identification of the juvenile"

Eight writ petitions alleging the Act and its several provisions to be unconstitutional
were filed, however, the Supreme Court of India dismissed all of them, holding the
Act to be constitutional

The demands for reduction in the age of juveniles from 18 years to 16 years were
also turned down by the Supreme Court

Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, 2014 is a proposed Act which
aims to replace the existing juvenile laws, so that juveniles under the age of 16-18,
involved in heinous offenses, can be tried as adults

In May 2015, a bill providing the trial of juveniles aged between 16 and 18, for
heinous crimes under laws governing adults, was passed by the Lok Sabha.

Juvenile
Justice
Legislation
in
India:
The first central legislation on Juvenile Justice was passed in 1986, by the Union
Parliament, providing a uniform law on juvenile justice for the entire country. Prior to this
law each state had its own enactment on juvenile justice with there being differences in
the way juveniles were treated by different state legal systems. The Juvenile Justice Act
was thus passed to provide care, protection, treatment, development and rehabilitation
of neglected or delinquent juveniles and for the settlement of certain matters related to
and
disposition
of
delinquent
juveniles
There are certain guiding principles which need to be adhered to in the administration
of juvenile justice and they form the basis on which the Act and the Rules are formed.
The juvenile justice functionaries should abide by the following fundamental principles
in order to understand the Act, interpret according to the situation in which the child is
taken into custody and most importantly contribute to better and effective
implementation of the Act. They are basically drawn from all the national and
international standards pertaining to children wherein a strong impetus is given to the
fulfillment and protection of the childs rights. Emphasis is also laid on reintegration of
the child into the family system to ensure proper care and protection from all kinds of
exploitative

situations

Principles
to
be
Principle
-

Principle
Principle

followed
of

in
administration
of
presumption
of

of

dignity

of

Principle
Principle

Right

and
be

to

of

Best
family

of

the

rules:
innocence
worth
heard:

Interest:
responsibility:

- Principle of Safety (no harm, no abuse, no neglect, no exploitation and no

maltreatment):
- Positive measures to promote well being of the child, reduce vulnerabilities and aim at
development
of
childs
identity
:
-

Principle
of
Principle

Principle
Principle

non-stigmatizing
of
of
of

Principle
Principle

Principle

right
of

semantics,
non-waiver

equality
to

and
privacy

of
repatriation
of

decisions

and
of

actions:
rights:

non-discrimination:
and
confidentiality:
last
and

resort:
restoration:

Fresh

Start

When these principles are adhered to in letter and spirit, it would certainly ensure that
every child who comes into contact with the JJ System is assured safety, care, protection
and

justice.

History of Juvenile Justice Legislations in India since 1986 and their specific
provisions:
1.
Juvenile
Justice
Act
1986
JJ Act was enacted in pursuance of the Beijing Rules 1985, prior to the CRC
Definition of juvenile or child 16 years for boys and 18 years for girls
Children

were

categorized

as

delinquent

juveniles

and

neglected

juveniles

Both categories of children were kept in an Observation Home together pending

inquiry
Juvenile Welfare Board was formed to deal with the neglected juveniles and the Juvenile
Court was the adjudicating authority for the delinquent juvenile
The neglected juveniles were in the Juvenile Home and the delinquent juveniles to the
Special

Home

The Government of India ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the
Child in 1992 thereby making it expedient to adhere to the standards prescribed in the
Convention. Hence, the 1986 JJ Act had to be reviewed and changes had to be made in
order to secure the best interest of the child and focus on social re-integration of the
child

without

resorting

to

judicial

proceedings.

The JJ Act 1986 was repealed and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children)
Act
2000 was passed taking into consideration all the International standards prescribed as
per the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Standard Minimum Rules for the
Administration of Juvenile Justice, 1985 (Beijing Rules), The UN Guidelines for the
Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency called the Riyadh Guidelines, 1990 and the United
Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty (1990)
2.

The

Juvenile

Justice

(Care

and

Protection

of

Children)

Act

2000

The Title of the Act stresses on the need for care and protection to both categories of
children
Uniform age for both boys and girls any child who has not completed the age of 18
fall within the jurisdiction of the Act to comply with the CRC definition of the child

Separation of child in need of care and protection and child in conflict with law
Constitution of Child Welfare Committees to deal with children in need of care and
protection and Juvenile Justice Boards to handle children in conflict with law
The category of children in need of care and protection has been expanded to include
victims of armed conflict, natural calamity, civil commotion, child who is found
vulnerable
and
likely
to
be
inducted
into
drug
abuse
More legal protection assured for the child in conflict with law detention to be resorted
to as the last option, disqualification of past records and privacy maintained
The innovation the law makes with respect to children in need of care and protection is
the conceptualization of restoration of the child as being the focal point, with restoration
being conceptualized as restoration to parents, adopted parents or foster parents.
(Sec39).
The law outline four options of restoration for children in childrens homes and special
homes which include adoption, foster care, sponsorship and after care
3. The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Act, 2006
The JJ Act 2000 was subsequently amended and hereafter referred to as the Principal
Act
The Amendment Act brought about 26 amendments which are in force
This Act forms the legal system and framework for the care, protection, treatment and
rehabilitation
of
children
of
both
categories
i.

The

Objective

of

the

Act:

- To Lay Down A Legal Structure For The Juvenile Justice System In The Country
- To Provide A Special Approach To The Protection And Treatment Of Juveniles
- To outline the machinery and infrastructure required for the care, protection,
treatment,
development
and
rehabilitation
of
juveniles
- To establish norms and standards for administration of juvenile justice
- To establish linkages and co-ordination between the formal system of juvenile justice
and
voluntary
efforts
in
the
welfare
of
juveniles
- To constitute special offences in relation to juveniles and provide punishment.
ii.

Salient

features

of

JJA:

1. a. The Act known as The Reformatory Act deals with two categories of children,
namely children in need of care and protection and children in conflict with the law.

b. The competent authority to deal with children in need of care and protection is the
Child Welfare Committee which constitutes a Chairperson and four other members, one
of whom atleast should be a woman. Chapter IV of this Module would focus in detail
about Children in need of care and protection and the functioning of the CWC in
rehabilitation

and

disposition

of

cases

c. Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) is the competent authority to deal with children in conflict
with law which comprises of three members. The Chairperson of the Board should be a
First Class Judicial Magistrate and two honorary social workers out of whom atleast one
should be a woman. Special provisions for children in conflict with law and the
responsibilities of the Board are discussed in detail in Chapter III of this Module.
2. The Act provides for the establishment of various kinds of Institutions such as
- Childrens Home for the reception of child in need of care and protection.
Special
Homes
for
the
reception
of
child
in
conflict
with
law
- Observation Homes which are meant for the temporary reception of children during
the
pendency
of
any
inquiry.
- After-care Organizations which are meant for the purpose of taking care of children
after

they

have

been

discharged

from

Childrens

Home

or

Special

Homes.

3. A few sections in the Act (Sec 23 26) are focused on the offences committed by
anyone against a child such as assault, causing mental or physical suffering and
employment of a child which are considered as non bailable offences.
ii. Rules under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2000
(56
of
2000)
and
the
Amendment
Act
33
of
2006):
The Ministry of Women and Child Development at New Delhi, the 26th day of
October, 2007 notified the Model Rules under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection
of Children) Act 2000 and the Amendment Act 2006 to be administered by the States for
better implementation and administration of the provisions of the Act in its true spirit
and
substance.
These rules called the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Rules, 2007 has
come into force on the date of its publication in the Official Gazette and these Rules will
be conformed to until the concerned State Government formulates Rules specific for the
State

with

effect

to

implementation

of

the

JJ

Act.

The Act in Section 68 prescribes various areas wherein the Rules can be applied to for
better
implementation of the Act, specifically with management of the homes, standards to be

adhered to, roles and responsibilities of the JJ functionaries, procedures and functioning
of the competent authorities, rehabilitation mechanism and operation of JJ Fund.
It is recommended that the Act is implemented in line with the Rules to promote better
understanding of the Act in order to benefit the children who come in contact with the JJ
System.

Three weeks after President Pranab Mukherjee gave assent to the new Juvenile law
which permits minors between 16 and 18 who committed heinous offences like rape and
murder to be tried as adults, a public interest litigation has been filed in the Supreme
Court challenging its constitutional validity. Parliament had passed the bill on December
22 last year amidst a national outrage after the juvenile involved in the Nirbhaya
gangrape case walked free in accordance with the earlier provision under the law after a
three year stay at a reformatory home. The PIL , filed by Congress leader and Activist
Tahseen Poonawalla said the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015,
cleared in the winter session of Parliament which repeals and recasts the old Act is
unreasonable, arbitrary and in violation of Article 14 (right to equality) of the
Constitution. It challenges section 15 of the new Act which says in case of a heinous
offence alleged to have been committed by a child, who has completed or is above the
age of 16 years, the Juvenile Justice Board shall conduct a preliminary inquiry to
determine whether a juvenile offender is to be sent for rehabilitation or be tried as an
adult. The plea said the impugned amended Act is draconian and unconstitutional which
instead of providing care and protection to children deems them as adult in cases where
the alleged commission of crime by them is heinous in nature. It further said that the
amendment goes against the letter and spirit of The UN Convention on the Rights of the
Child and is against the protection accorded to Child and adolescent criminals since
1800s. In a decisive step to curb crimes by minors which has witnesses a sharp rise in
recent times, the new law gives Juvenile Justice Board the power to decide if a minor

between the ages of 16 and 18 accused of heinous crimes like rape and murder should
be tried as adults in a regular court.Under the law, the juvenile board will conduct an
assessment of factors including the premeditated nature of the offence and the
childs
ability
to
understand
the

consequences of the offence. Based on the assessment, children can be prosecuted in

an ordinary criminal court, and punished as adults if convicted. As per the blanket rule
earlier, any person aged below 18 accused of any offence, including heinous, can only
be sent to a reformatory home for three years. The Board, which will have a magistrate
and 2 social workers as members are to conduct an assessment of factors including the
premeditated nature of the offence and the childs ability to understand the
consequences of the offence. If there is no majority view the juvenile is to be sent for
rehabilitation and lodged at an observation home. No juvenile can however be given
death sentence or life imprisonment. Minimum punishment which can be given for
heinous offence is 7 years imprisonment. The new law proposed a Juvenile Justice Board
and Child Welfare Committee to be set up in each district. It also prescribed penalties
for cruelty against a child, offering a narcotic substance to a child, and abduction or
selling a child.
A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the constitutional validity of the new
law passed by Parliament allowing suspects aged 16 years of age and above to be tried as adults if
they commit heinous offences such as rape and murder.
The petition filed by activist Tahseen Poonawalla contends that the Juvenile Justice (Care and
Protection of Children) Act, 2015 is arbitrary and in violation of the fundamental right of right to
equality enshrined in Article 14 of the Constitution.
The petition sought the court to judicially review Section 15 of the 2015 Act which provides an option
for a juvenile offender aged above 16 to be tried as an adult if the Juvenile Justice Board gives its
consent on a preliminary inquiry.
It said the Act focussed on punishment of juveniles rather than the stated constitutional objective of
all juvenile laws, which is care and protection. The statute further violates the letter and spirit of the
U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child.