Conviction rate in POCSO cases can be increased: judge

Conviction rate in Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) cases can be increased if police officials give more time and attention to the statements of the children, Additional District and Sessions judge (POCSO) Shibu M.P. has said. For instance, if a child refers to a touch to their private part in colloquial language, an explanation in the statement on what part the child was indicating will make things easier.

Mr. Shibu was delivering the inaugural address at a consultation on ‘Implementation of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), 2012,’ organised by the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) in association with the Sakhi Women’s Resource Centre to coincide with Human Rights Day on Tuesday.

Police personnel should stick to what a child says while taking their statement. They should also try to record the circumstances that resulted in the offence, Mr. Shibu said.

The inaugural was followed by a brief outline on the POCSO Act by Additional District judge S. Sreeraj. He pointed out that in POCSO cases, there was no need for a complainant or complaint. A case could be registered as soon as information on the offence was received.

Talking about the exceptions in POCSO cases, Mr. Sreeraj said any delay by a child in reporting an offence would not adversely affect the case. If in a statement a child says he or she has been abused by different persons in separate locations, separate FIRs should be registered. In case a single FIR is registered, split charge could be filed, and the certified copy of the first case included in the next case.

The problem with a single FIR and split charges was that if a joint trial is allowed then a child would be cross-examined by the lawyers concerned in all these cases, he said.

If there is one accused who has repeatedly abused the child, then one charge sheet is enough as it become an aggravated offence, he said.

In a session on ‘Gaps in investigation and issues related to medical examination of children – improving mechanisms,’ senior civil judge and DLSA secretary S. Shamnad emphasised the need for recording a child’s statement in the same language. If needed, an explanation can be given.

Medical examination of a child could be done before registering FIR. Even if a child complains of a touch, doctors should ask questions about where the child was touched and conduct a medical examination if necessary.

Nothing should be done to reveal the child’s identity, be it a blurred image, name of parents or school. Even if the victim’s identity is not hidden, police personnel should take care not reveal it in public, he said.

Ajeetha Beegum, Deputy Inspector General of Police, nearly 4,500 POCSO cases were registered in the State, with the highest being in Thiruvananthapuram. However, the conviction rate was 15%. A Standard Operating Procedure prepared after studying 200 cases revealed that the most common reason for acquittal in POCSO cases was victims turning hostile. That came to 92%.

She pointed out that investigation officers were bound to produce maximum evidence, even if victims turned hostile or in cases of ‘love affair.’ Deficiency or irregularities in investigation and lack of sufficient legal knowledge were other factors that led to acquittal.

Meenakshy V., Additional Director (Family Welfare), Directorate of Health Services, spoke.

Sessions on ‘Challenges in rehabilitation/victim compensation’ and ‘Challenges involved in child-friendly trials’ were also held.

Former chairperson of the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights Shobha Koshy and Sakhi secretary J. Sandhya were present.