Sitting amid the blackened remains of his home, 32-year-old Nikesh Gawali carefully broke open a half-melted plastic box with a screwdriver. His hands shook slightly, not out of fear, but out of hope. “I’m trying to find my daughter Aarti’s gold earrings,” he said quietly, still focused on the box. “She’s just five. I got them made recently after months of labour work.” The plastic box, warped and blackened by heat, was one of the few things left from his two-room house on the outskirts of Dhamangaon village . All around him lay ash, broken tin sheets and charred wooden beams. The walls had cracked under the heat and the front room’s tin roof had caved in completely. What remained was a blackened debris all around - almost nothing to suggest a home once stood there. Nikesh earns his living as an agricultural labourer, like many in the village. Work is uncertain and depends on the season. Those earrings weren’t just jewellery - they were a small dream, a reward for his hard work,...
- Law must change as per time
By Dheeraj Fartode
Looks are often deceptive. For juvenile delinquents this statement fits cent per cent, given the rising trend of their involvement in crimes whose mere mention sends shiver down the spine of everyone. In fact, police statistics reveal that juvenile delinquents in 16-18 age group are at forefront in committing violent crimes. And when one thinks deeply the comparison is obvious; is it easy to contain a hard-core criminal if he is major, and in dealing with juvenile offenders, is police department clueless?
This is apparent as more and more crimes, that are considered major, the accused involved are juvenile. But in the eyes of law of land they are juvenile delinquents, they cannot be sentenced to a prison term. So the maximum sentence as per existing law is, a stay at Reform Centres. However it is not serving the purpose, if the record of juvenile delinquents in crime sheet is any indication.
State police have arrested 6,770 juveniles in 2011 for their involvement in various crimes. And in Nagpur Police Commissioner, 900 delinquents were arrested during the past two years alone.
Involvement of juveniles in crime, often serious ones, is increasing every year and top brass of law enforcement agencies have noticed a sudden spurt during the last five years. A senior police officer said that juveniles are repeat offenders and their interrogation reveals that they have no fear of law and law enforcement agencies.
As per the data collated by Nagpur Police, juveniles were accused in 26 murders in the past two years and 17 accused out of 26 were between age group of 16 and 18-years.
In 2011, four juveniles were arrested after they were accused of rape. The numbers rose to five in rape cases during year 2012. City cops nabbed 246 persons in 2011 for dacoity, robbery and thefts and their number increased to 253 in 2012. And in more than 70 per cent cases, offenders were in the age-group of 15-18 years, the statistics reveal.
Juvenile Justice Board functions in every district and they try cases under Juvenile Justice Act. Those who are below 18-year of age are considered as minor, a person who is mentally not developed enough to distinguish between the right and the wrong.
After brutal Delhi gang-rape case, in which one of the accused was minor, their is demand to decrease the age of minor from 18 to 16-years. In Maharashtra State, 145 juveniles were charged with murder and 135 others were held for attempt to murder in year 2011. And ironically State has the dubious distinction of figuring at top as to involvement of juvenile delinquents in serious crimes. In Madhya Pradesh, 271 juveniles were booked for rape followed by Maharashtra with 125. Maharashtra has also recorded involvement of 1,256 juveniles in theft cases followed by Andhra Pradesh with 646.
Prof. Dr Vijay Shingnapure who teaches at Tirpude College of Social Work, felt that law must change as per time. While earlier it was fit that juvenile delinquents were those below 18-years of age, but in modern times children are maturing fast. By age of 14-years most of them are having full knowledge of their behaviour.
As to rising involvement of juvenile in serious crimes, Prof Shingnapure blamed it on society, which has lost sense of right and wrong. Look at what is dished out on television and also in our films and in this bombardment how can children not get swayed.
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| Juvenile offender |
In fact, Principal District Judge Subhash Mohod while addressing a seminar on Juvenile Justice organised on Sunday had said, “Juvenile crime ratio is increasing day by day and it is very high in metro cities. In past few years, it is observed that the juvenile crime is also spreading its wings in Nagpur also. Unawareness among acting bodies and police about the Juvenile Justice Act is also a matter to think.”
Nagpur City
Heads 2011 2012 (Till November)
Murder 18 08
Atmt to murder 05 17
Rape 01 05
Molestation 03 00
Eve-teasing 02 00
Robbery 17 28
Burglary 88 78
Thefts 141 147
Riots 15 15
Grievous hurt 78 84
Other IPC Crimes 62 55
Total 439 461
(As per city police)
Maharashtra
Murder 145
Attempt to murder 135
Rape 125
Kidnapping 50
Dacoity 48
Robbery 176
Burglary 571
Theft 1256
(As per NCRB record 2011)
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