HC seeks status on J&K Commission For Protection Of Child Rights

Directs CS To Appear In Person if Status Report Not Filed By August 14
Srinagar, July 30: Considering the fact that Section 44 of The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 mandates monitoring of effective implementation by the State Commission for protection of child rights, the High Court of J&K and Ladakh has granted the government two weeks time to file a status report about the progress regarding constitution of J&KCPCR.

Hearing a Public Interest Litigation, a division bench of  Chief Justice (acting) Tashi Rabstan and Justice Rajnesh Oswal ordered that in case the government failed to file the status report, its Chief Secretary shall be personally present on the next date of hearing on August 14.
As soon as the PIL, filed in 2020, came up for hearing before the Bench,  Sr. AAG A.R. Malik sought two weeks’ time to file the status report in terms of order dated 27 March this year. While the court granted the time, it said that the Chief Secretary shall appear in person before it on the next date of hearing on August 14 if the status report was not filed.
On March 27, the court noted that on 7 August 2023, the counsel for the government was directed to apprise it as to the progress of the constitution of J&K Commission for Protection of Child Rights ( J&KCPCR). Later, the counsel representing authorities informed the court that a Committee was convened on 8 August 2023. However on 4 & 20 December last year, 28 February and 1 March this year, the counsel sought time on behalf of the authorities to apprise the Court about the constitution of the commission and nothing was made known to the court as to the stage of the process of the outcome of such a meeting for appointment of the members of the Commission for Protection of Child Rights. “We are unable to understand as to whether authorities had really taken any concrete steps or not,” the court had noted in its order on March 27, adding, “We take this matter with utmost seriousness it deserves in view of the important statutory role the Commission plays. Accordingly, we direct that the respondents shall without fail intimate as to the status of the process for appointment of the members of the Committee by the next date failing which, we would be compelled to call the concerned official respondents to remain present in person before this Court to explain before us.”