About Juvenile Justice Act, 2015

	Description
Purpose	To provide for the care, protection, and rehabilitation of children in need of care and protection, and for the adjudication of delinquent juveniles accused of committing an offence.
Age group covered	Act covers children up to the age of 18 years.
Categories of offences	Offences committed by children are categorised into petty offences, serious offences, and heinous offences.
Trial of children as adults	For the first time, the Act provided for trying juveniles in the age group of 16-18 as adults in cases of heinous offences.
Role of Juvenile Justice Board	The Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) is responsible for the care, protection, and rehabilitation of children in need of care and protection, and for the adjudication of delinquent juveniles accused of committing an offence.
Role of Child Welfare Committee	Child Welfare Committee (CWC) is responsible for the care, protection, and rehabilitation of children in need of care and protection.
Prohibition of disclosing identity	Act prohibits the disclosure of the identity of a child in conflict with the law and mandates that the child be dealt with in a child-friendly manner.
Monitoring and review	National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) is responsible for monitoring the proper implementation of the provisions of the Act, and conducting reviews and evaluations.

Issues with Juvenile’s trial

There are several issues with the trial of juveniles as adults. Here are some of them:

Latent consequences: Juveniles are generally not mature enough to understand the consequences of their actions fully. Trying them as adults can lead to disproportionate sentences and undue punishment.
Losing scope for rehabilitation: Young offenders have a higher potential for rehabilitation and reform than adult offenders. Trying them as adults can limit their chances of being reformed and reintegrated into society.
Issue in legal representation: Juveniles may not have access to legal representation or may not understand their rights. Trying them as adults can result in unfair trials and convictions.
Impact on mental health: Being tried as an adult can have a severe impact on a juvenile’s mental health and well-being. It can lead to anxiety, depression, and trauma.
Stigma and discrimination: Juveniles who are tried as adults may face stigma and discrimination throughout their lives, affecting their ability to secure jobs, education, and housing.

The National Commission for Protection of Children (NCPCR) has issued guidelines for conducting a preliminary assessment by the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB).
This has been done under Section 15 of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, to ascertain whether a juvenile can be tried as an adult.
For the first time, the Act has provided for trying juveniles as adults in cases of heinous offences.

The Juvenile Justice Act categorizes offences committed by children into three categories –

Section 15 of the Juvenile Justice Act states that a preliminary assessment should be conducted by the Board in cases where a child above the age of 16 is alleged to have committed a heinous offence.
The assessment should focus on the child’s mental and physical capacity to commit the offence.
It should also consider the child’s ability to understand the consequences of the offence and the circumstances in which it was committed.

Assessment of the offender child: The Act directs that the Board shall consider the mental and physical capacity of the child for committing the alleged offence, the ability to understand the consequences of the offence, and the circumstances in which the offence was committed.
Psychological ‘trial’: It states that the Board can take the assistance of experienced psychologists or psychosocial workers or other experts. The Act also gives a disclaimer that the assessment is not a trial, but is only to assess the capacity of the child to commit and understand the consequences of the alleged offence.
Arriving at conclusion: After the assessment, the Board can pass an order saying there is a need to try the said child as an adult and transfer the case to a children’s court with the relevant jurisdiction.
Penalty: If tried as a minor, the child could be sent to a special home for a maximum of three years. If tried as an adult, the child can be sentenced to a jail term, except being sentenced to death or life imprisonment without the possibility of release.

The Social Investigation Report (SIR) is prepared by a probation officer, child welfare officer, or any social worker, and the Social Background Report (SBR) is prepared after interacting with the child or child’s family.
During the preliminary assessment, the Board and experts analyze and consider these reports.
If the Board decides that a child should be tried as an adult after the preliminary assessment, the case may be transferred to the Children’s Court with jurisdiction to try such offences.

The major issue remains the implementation and absorption of these principles in the system, particularly to be followed by the JJB and the Children’s Court.
A lot of principles which have been made a part of the Act have not been given due prominence by the Board as well as by the Children’s Court.

Conclusion

The NCPCR is under a statutory obligation under Section 109 of the JJ Act, 2015 to monitor the proper implementation of the provisions of the Act.
The guidelines have been made to remove any ambiguity and to clarify the steps that need to be followed while conducting the preliminary assessment.