The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015

A sixteen-year-old is picked up in Thane after a mobile-phone snatching and a scuffle outside a station. In the same week, a seven-year-old is found alone on a platform at CSMT with no one to claim him. The police are involved in both stories, yet the law wants neither child in a lockup or before an ordinary court. Why, and which body handles which child? The Juvenile Justice Act of 2015 splits children into two groups and gives each its own forum, its own timelines and its own idea of what a good outcome looks like.

In two minutes

The Juvenile Justice Act 2015 treats everyone under eighteen as a child and sends them to one of two bodies: the Juvenile Justice Board if the child is alleged to have broken the law, the Child Welfare Committee if the child needs care and protection, with rehabilitation rather than punishment as the aim.

The rest of this chapter

The full explanation, the cheat sheet, every previous-year question at every mark weight, the quiz and the answer skeletons are part of Criminal Procedure Code 1973, Juvenile Justice Act 2015 and POCSO Act 2012 on LexBlox Semester. Sign in to unlock the subject, or read Module 1 of Legal Language and Writing free.