GUWAHATI, June 27 � Rajiv Lochan (name changed) was just 14 when he ended up being in conflict with law. Today, he is 24 and no more a juvenile but the trauma continues to get back to him and his family time and again.
Rajiv, however, is not an exception as the Juvenile Justice Boards (JJBs) in Assam fail to bring hundreds of such cases to logical conclusion even after several years have passed, some even after more than a decade.
This has happened even after the Assam Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of children) Rule, 2011 clearly states that that the JJBs should complete every inquiry within four months.
At present, 1789 juvenile cases are pending with the JJBs in Assam, of which many are as old as ten years.
The scenario assumes significance in view of the increasing rate of juvenile crime in Assam. The NRCB report 2012 published a week back has rated Assam as the State with the third highest incidence of juvenile crime in the country. As per the NRCB report, Assam reported 2345 number of juvenile crimes in 2011(IPC).
The scenario in Kamrup is no better. Of the 196 cases pending, 16 cases have crossed 10 years mark. Besides, 31 cases reported five to ten years back and 86 cases reported one to five years are pending with the JJBs.
What is more shocking is that as per the rule, the Chief Judicial Magistrate of the district concerned is supposed to review the pendency after every six months.
The State Child Protection Society is said to have written to the Principal Magistrates, Deputy Commissioners and the Juvenile Justice Committee of the Gauhati High Court about the matter but to no avail.
�If a juvenile case continues for over a stipulated period of time, it affects both the victim and the family. The very meaning of juvenile justice under the circumstances would have no meaning,� a child psychologist said.