The Bombay high court has come down heavily on the Central and state government with regards to implementing the Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005.
The Bombay high court has come down heavily on the Central and state government with regards to implementing the Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005. While directing the governments to form a new Commission to oversee the implementation of the Act, the court also ordered them to create awareness of the rights of children and remedies and machinery available under the said enactments on the lines of the United Nations Convention on the Right of the Child, 1989. The court has also directed the governments to file compliance on or before July 4, 2016.
The division bench comprising Justices A.S. Oka and P.D. Naik while issuing orders after hearing the petition filed by the Forum for Fairness in Education (FFE) said that the state government should take immediate steps to reconstitute the state commission and do so within six months of the order. The court also directed the government to ensure that the remuneration of the chairperson and members is consistent with the remuneration payable under Central rules.
With regards to the Juvenile Justice court, the division bench also directed the state to appoint qualified public prosecutors and in the absence of such persons to approach the Maharashtra Judicial Academy with a request to provide regular training to the Special Public Prosecutors.
The division bench also stressed on the need for creating awareness not only through the print and electronic media but also through FM channels by way of preparing documentaries. The court also directed the state to come out with a scheme to publicise the United Nations Convention on the Right of the Child, 1989. The state government has been asked to do the same within two months.
While the petition has been disposed off, the court has kept a compliance hearing on July 8 and said such hearings would be held regularly till the time all directions were not complied with by the government.
Jayant Jain, president of FFE, said, “It is a historical judgment and will ensure that the issue of child rights is not neglected anymore. Compliance of the order and the Act will ensure that appointments are as per the law in all departments and corruption will cease.”
