HYDERABAD: Within a year of its operations, the special child-friendly court at Bharosa Centre has managed to dispose of 29 cases booked under the POCSO Act and bringing justice to the victims of sexual violence.
With this, the special court has managed to make a small yet a deep dent in a huge pile of pending cases, which stands at 305 in Hyderabad jurisdiction till date.
According to officials, the numbers are nothing short of an achievement.
“In 14 months, clearing 29 cases is a dramatic turnaround. Primarily the convictions are improving because the victims and the witnesses are being briefed by the legal advisor about the status of the case,” Swati Lakra, IG, women’s safety and in-charge of SHE Teams and Bharosa, said.
Of the 29 cases, the court sentenced the accused to a life term in six cases. This includes the iconic, landmark judgment delivered on Thursday, to sentence a juvenile in conflict with the law to serve a life term in jail for raping and murdering a male child.
The case was resolved in 2 years.
Previously, only on June 7, the court had given life imprisonment to another brutal case of rape from 2015 where an intellectually and physically disabled child was the victim.
In that case, as well, the officials ensured no critical evidence is lost considering the challenges of dealing with a special child. The police officials had made use of a translator for special children to record statements of the victim.
Apart from these, the special court gave 10-year imprisonment in 13 cases, 7-year jail term in 2 cases and imprisonment for three years in another six cases of POCSO crimes.
However, senior officials said they are trying to push for making the special court at Bharosa centre a regular full-time court.
At present, the Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Sunitha Kunchala attends this court twice a week. “Discussions are on with the High Court to make this a regular court. The HC is also considering to start hearing of rape cases at Bharosa court,” Swati Lakra said.