Nearly 10,000 children wrongfully held in adult prisons in India
A recent study by London-based organization iProBono has uncovered that 9,681 children were wrongfully incarcerated in adult prisons in India from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2021. This alarming statistic translates to an average of over 1,600 children being transferred out of juvenile facilities each year. The research titled "Incarceration of Children In Prisons in India" was unveiled on May 11 in New Delhi and is based on data obtained through research and government Right to Information (RTI) applications.
High child incarceration rates in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar
The study highlights a significant number of children being transferred to adult prisons in states such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, raising serious questions about the juvenile justice system in India. For instance, Gorakhpur District Prison in Uttar Pradesh transferred 294 juveniles in six years, despite the absence of Juvenile Justice Board visits. The revelation was based on data collected from 124 RTI applications filed between April 2022 and March 2023 across 28 states and two union territories.
Data gaps and reporting issues in child incarceration
The study also revealed significant gaps in data collection and reporting, with responses obtained from only half of the total 570 district and central prisons. Notably, states such as Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Nagaland, and Ladakh were observed to have substantial omissions. These regions accounted for missing data from 85 district and central prisons. In contrast, 90% of the prisons responded in Haryana, revealing the number of children transferred at 1,621.
Personal accounts reveal harrowing experiences
One of the children affected by this issue, Neha, shared her distressing experience. "For six years, I thought the jail would be the end of my life. I lost my childhood," Neha said. Accused by her father of murdering her mother at 17, she was wrongfully held in an adult prison for years despite being a minor under the Juvenile Justice (JJ) Act.
State authorities blamed for child incarceration issue
Former Supreme Court Judge and chairperson of the Supreme Court Juvenile Justice Committee, Ravindra Bhat, blamed state authorities for this. He stated that states are the "parens patriae," or legal protectors, of those who cannot protect themselves. Similarly, founder General Secretary of Prayas JAC Society, Amod Kanth, expressed surprise at the number of children lodged in jails across India. "I feel there are umpteen opportunities for all the stakeholders and the police to find a solution to this," he said.
