It's My Right: The horrific details of the Epstein files, the documents related to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, have sent a shockwave across the world. The files have revealed that Epstein was involved in sexual abuse of children, trafficking, and operated an ecosystem to exploit their rights. The Epstein Files are a stark reminder of what thousands of children, mainly from low-income backgrounds, face globally.
India is also not safe in terms of safeguarding its children, with the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data showing a gradual increase in the crime against children over the years. As per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), over 1 lakh cases of child abuse was registered in 2023, 9 per cent more than 2022. However, the laws related to child abuse have gotten more structured in recent years to curb such changes.
What Is Child Abuse?
When a child is tortured emotionally, physically, verbally, and sexually, it is labelled as child abuse. The effects of such cases are long-lasting and can have a big impact on the child's personality. The offender is usually someone known, and the cases go unnoticed due to the lack of awareness and social norms. As per the "Into the Light Index 2025", India has shown a 94 per cent rise in reported sexual offences against children under POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act) between 2017 and 2022.
Child Abuse Affects
The affect of such incidents are long-lasting and can severely change the personality of a child. As per the experts, the behaviour of children changes significantly due to the trauma and they often get suicidal thoughts.
Contributing Factors
There are several factors behind such incidents, including poverty and illiteracy. Apart from this, several cases go unnoticed due to less outreach and lack of awareness.
What Does The Law Say?
As per Chapter V of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Sections 93 to 99 contain provisions with respect to offences against children and women. Earlier in the IPC, there were provisions regarding offences against children; however, the BNS has a separate chapter for such cases, making it structured.
Section 93: Parents will face imprisonment for a term extending up to seven years if they abandon a child under the age of 12 years.
Section 94: Addresses the offence of concealment of birth by secret disposal of a dead body. The parents will face imprisonment for a term that may extend to two years
Section 95: Criminalises the act of hiring any child. The offender will face imprisonment for a term up to ten years
Section 96: Establishes the offence of procuration of a child
Section 97: Criminalises the act of kidnapping any child
Sections 98 and 99: Deal with the offences of selling and buying a child
Umesh Burnwal, a lawyer in the Supreme Court, stated that the constitution guarantees the right to free and compulsory elementary education for all children. He further stated that the centre has advised the state governments to take steps to curb such cases.
"Article 21A of the Constitution guarantees the right to free and compulsory elementary education for all children in the age group of 6 to 14 years; Article 24 pertains to the prohibition of child labour and was inserted with the sole objective to protect children from forced labour," Burnwal stated.
"Contacting a health-care provider, a local child welfare agency, the police department, Court or a child abuse hotline for advice. Further, the Government of India advises State Governments and Union Territory Administrators to take steps for effective prevention, detection, registration, investigation and prosecution of all crimes against children within their jurisdiction," he added.
What Are The Remedies?
The Child Welfare Committee (CWC) has been formed under the Women and Child Development Department to curb the cases of child abuse. The police officers are bound to provide the details to the committee within 24 hours of registration of the case. The committee then appoints a person to support the child and monitor the case until justice is served.
Apart from this, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) was also formed to regulate all laws and programs. The commission has the right to take suo moto cognisance for violation of child rights. Any reporting of child abuse can be done by dialing the toll-free number 1098; however, the complainants can also consult the social workers for assistance.
(Disclaimer: This article is part of the series 'It's My Right'. The views expressed in the article are for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. To read more articles in the series, click here)