KRISHNAGIRI: Transferring cases to Mahila courts may not be enough to reduce pendency of POCSO cases in Tamil Nadu.
Stakeholders said staff crunches at courts must be addressed first. According to data from an RTI reply to Krishnagiri activist S Prabakar, the percentage of pending POCSO cases in relation to reported cases in the State was 98 per cent (1,516 pending cases against 1, 544 reported ones) in 2015.
This rose to 233 per cent (5,599 pending cases against 2,396 reported ones) in 2019 and to 236 per cent (7,293 pending cases against 3,090 reported ones) in 2020. Dharmapuri, Thanjavur, and Sivaganga are among the districts with the highest number of pending POCSO cases.
"The court's role in a POCSO case begins right after an FIR is registered. The court staff have to monitor each step of the case, both before and after the trial begins. With limited staff and a massive backlog, the rate of disposal won't increase by merely transferring a few cases. The long-term solution would be to increase staff and provide dedicated facilities for POCSO courts," an official at the Madurai court said.
Although 140 'elopement' cases were transferred to the Madurai Mahila court following the G.O., nearly 400 cases are pending trial at the POCSO court, which has only seven sanctioned staff: a shirastedar, head clerk, assistant clerk, two junior assistants, a typist, and stenographer, the official said.
A special public prosecutor in Sivagangai district, who was a PP at the POCSO court, pointed out the difficulties faced by the court. "In my first two months, one judge handled POSCO cases, cases before the Mahila court and the special court for Protection of Civil Rights Act. Then there was no judge for six months," she recounted.
The PP who succeeded her added the pendency worsened during the pandemic but training programmes for all prosecutors handling POCSO cases would be helpful. "Delays lead to some victims turning hostile. In some cases, the victim has married and wants to move on, rather than relive the trauma. This benefits the accused," she said.
In Tiruchy, which is among districts with the fewest pending cases, PP in the second additional district sessions court R Venkatesan said reducing pendency was in the hands of judges. Venkatasan was PP at the Tiruchy fast track Mahila court from November 2018 to June 2020. "Only hard work and the interest of the judges will reduce pending cases," he said.
He worked with two judges Magizhendhi and Vanitha, both of whom effectively handled the cases, he said. Senior advocate Sudha Ramalingam said the judiciary, police, health department, and NGOs should be sensitised on how to support victims, and the media must be given guidelines on reporting such cases.
Meanwhile, Addl DGP (Crime against Women & Children) K Vanniyaperumal said officers of the special wing in all districts would be trained to handle women and child victims, collect evidence, and follow the trial.
(With inputs from Jegadeeswari Pandian from Madurai)