BENGALURU: After a two-year delay, crucial appointments are likely to be made to major bodies for the protection of child rights, Child Welfare Committees (CWC) and Juvenile Justice Boards (JJB) of all 31 districts in Karnataka. The appointments will be made in a month’s time, according to Director of Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS), Department of Women and Child Development, Latha Kumari.
The lengthy delay in appointment of members -- to 38 CWCs and 31 JJBS -- is attributed to three main reasons. Two members appointed to the selection committee to select members of CWCs and JJBs, on August 6, 2020, on the recommendation of the then women and child development minister, were dismissed after a writ petition was filed against them in the High Court.
The HC passed an order on September 3, 2021, that they were not eligible for the positions. Two retired high court judges who were appointed chairpersons of the selection committee have resigned. A week ago, retired HC judge Justice H G Ramesh was appointed chairman.
A full-fledged committee is now in place -- comprising ICPS Director Latha Kumari, two members from NGOs, including Vasudeva Sharma of Child Rights Trust, Dulseen Kaastra of Shanthi Sadana, academicians Dr B N Roopesh, Assistant Professor, HOD, Social Work, Krishnadevaraya University, and Dr Gowri Maanik Maanas, Assistant Professor, Clinical Psychology division, Nimhans, and Ashok Yaragatti from the Karnataka Commission for Protection of Child Rights.
With this, the crucial appointments of chairperson and four members for each Child Welfare Committee, a principal magistrate and two members for each Juvenile Justice Board, are likely to happen soon.CWCs, which handle care and protection of children in crisis, and JJBs, which handle cases of juveniles in conflict with the law, appointed in October 2017, had completed their three-year term in September 2020.
Additional officers for B’luru
According to Latha Kumari, they have got permission to have an additional Child Protection Officer and constitute four additional Child Welfare Committees (along with existing three CWCs) to handle cases in Bengaluru, going by its population.