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Delhi High Court Judge Tara Vitasta Gangu on Saturday stressed that children who have been sexually abused should be treated as survivors rather than victims, as the term has negative connotations.
Justice Ganjo was speaking as the chief guest at the opening session of the seminar organized by the Delhi Commission for the Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) titled “POCSO @ 10: Rehabilitation of POCSO Victims: Strategies, Challenges and the Way Forward”.
“I found that word to have quite negative connotations…just the fact that we continually call them victim…instead of victim, we might use the word survivor…because what’s done is done. They don’t need to be constantly reminded of the fact They are victims.”
She further said that the law and the courts are not “rigid” and that judges are continually ruling on the issue, but more needs to be done.
She said that “the healing process is much longer for children” and they require intervention at every step. “Whether it is restorative care in the Medicare and health care system, and whether it is about understanding children’s educational, familial and paralegal needs. We cannot fix or reverse the trauma we have caused but we need to help the child, throughout their life, at least until they reach a certain age. There needs to be a way to look at how they deal with it… There is a lot of awareness, dissemination of information, formulation of child protection policy, to look at prevention and not just treatment, support person to provide monthly reports, especially financial relief in some emergency and various other changes such as Initial evaluation form to be filled out. Coupling this with the new medical legal form will help advance the rights of any such child.
Noting that “trauma has a way of returning” which makes children’s rehabilitation important, Judge Gango said: “The question is what can each of us do, if you know anyone in your area, if you come across someone please try and help them.” .
She also highlighted that facilitative processes can be used by different agencies that work with rehabilitation who can sit down together and offer suggestions and ideas.
Justice Jasmeet Singh, who was the chief guest at the closing session, emphasized that the POCSO is not only “punitive” but also “affirmative action” as it provides for imprisonment that can extend to life but also “focuses on awarding compensation to the ‘victim’.” .
He noted that it is usually in such matters when it comes to the end when compensation is awarded to the survivor which may hamper the process “because rehabilitation or compensation is required not at the end of the process but sometimes in between or at the beginning.”
He also referred to an October 2022 decision by the High Commissioner in “X v State” which said that interim relief should be paid at the time the charge sheet was served, and expressed that although it was a step forward, it should move forward from through the Implementing Agencies.
Speaking of “teenage love,” Justice Singh asked, “Are we overcriminalizing teen love?” Clarify that adolescents are children “in a position or who wish to experiment with who they will be sexually active”.
Giving an example where one of the children is 18 and the other is 19, Justice Singh asked, “Can they be equated with the same brush or can they be equated in the same scenario where the victim is 18 and the perpetrator is about 30 or 35?”
“Because there are cases where one child is 17 and the other is 20. They fell in love. The law says that consent of a minor is not consent. But I personally feel that this is an issue that needs to be looked at and that needs to be addressed, and that needs to be reported.” about her “.
He also talked about how often in such cases the accused is either a family member or someone exercising control over the child. “This is an aspect that needs attention because more often than not the accused is in a position to take care of the child. So it often results in an acquittal, witnesses become hostile, and the trial takes a long period of time. So again, this is one of the issues that needs to be addressed when Talking about rehabilitation, Judge Singh said.
He added that while the defendant’s lawyer has “a duty to perform and he has to be honest with his client”, his efforts are to prove that “the survivor is either lying, exaggerating the incident” and doing so leads to “the re-traumatization, the revival of the entire incident by the survivor”.
“This again is something that needs to be addressed because the criminal justice system requires examination of the survivor… These are the issues that have been plaguing the system, I’m sure as we move forward, things will be done in that direction,” Justice Singh said.
Observing that survivors need to reintegrate back into society, he said, “We interact with them in rooms, what they’re really looking for is a voice. They want to get back into society. You need to be told yes you’ve been wronged; it needs to be recognized. It’s something that society needs, And family members to educate, and to be more aware of the issue in which the child actually feels that he has been wronged.”
He concluded by praising the DCPCR’s efforts, calling it “the first line of the rehabilitation process” and “the key in creating awareness”, and ensuring that these children have access to counseling.
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