2.43 lakh POCSO cases pending in Fast-Track Special Courts

In only 3% of the cases, the guilty were sentenced

New Delhi – Indian Child Protection Fund has published a report on POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act) cases pending in Fast-Track Special Courts till January 2023. The report states that there are 2.43 lakh POCSO cases pending in the country. In 2022, convicts were convicted in only 3% of cases. If no new cases are registered, the Court will take 9 years to dispose of these pending cases.

The report has been prepared based on information from the Ministry of Law, Ministry of Women and Child Development and the National Crime Records Bureau. The report said that as of January 2023, the number of registered cases were 2,68,038, of which only 8,909 cases have resulted in convictions.

Only 28 cases are concluded in POCSO Fast-Track Courts every year instead of the expected 165 cases

The Union Government started Fast-Track Special Courts from the year 2019. A provision of Rs 1,900 crore was made for these Courts. These Courts were given the target to conclude 41-42 cases every 4 months and 165 cases per year; but this report revealed that only 28 cases could be concluded every year. Some suggestions have been made to improve this situation one of which is to list POCSO cases on Court websites. The number of Fast-Track Courts should be increased. Security should be provided to the victim and his/her family.

Editorial Perspective

If there are so many cases pending in the Fast-Track Courts related to only one Act, it is unimaginable as to how many pending cases there might be related to other Acts. If this is the speed of Fast-Track Courts, then one can deduce that it is difficult to get justice quickly in India.