FASTER IS NOT FAIRER IN POCSO CASE CLEARANCE NUMBERS

NEWS: India has recently achieved a numerical milestone under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act: Fast-track courts disposed of more cases than were registered in a year (109% disposal rate in 2025)

POCSO

• Enacted in 2012
• Enacted to protect children (below 18 years) from sexual assault, sexual harassment, and pornography.
• Defines a child as any person below 18 years and applies irrespective of the gender of the child or offender.

What do the latest numbers show?

Disposal rates have increased

• Fast-track special courts introduced in 2019
• Funded via Nirbhaya Fund
• 5 lakh cases disposed
• Average 9.5 cases/month per court

Conviction rates have fallen

• Convictions: 35% (2019) → 29% (2023), Fast-track courts: ~19%

Why are convictions falling despite faster trials?

• Weak investigations– Rushed police work
• Overburdened court-High caseloads
• Lack of child-centric support

Para-Legal Volunteers

• Act as bridge between: Police, Courts, Child and family
• PLVs must be appointed at every police station for POCSO cases

systemic problems

• “Marriage to survivor” logic-Despite Section 6 (aggravated POCSO) being non-compoundable. Leads to forced lifelong abuse and normalisation of sexual violence
• Delayed compensation: courts usually wait for final verdicts, survivors receive money years later
• Central argument –Speed without support, investigation quality, and child protection turns justice into paperwork.

What should be done?

• Strengthen investigation & forensics
• Ensure PLVs in every police station
• Appoint and train support persons under Section 39
• Time-bound forensic lab reporting
• Shift focus from disposal numbers to justice outcomes