In Brief

This suo motu petition addressed the nationwide crisis of pending POCSO (child sexual abuse) cases by directing the establishment of exclusive, specialized courts to handle such matters. The Supreme Court mandated that districts with 100+ pending POCSO cases establish at least one dedicated court; those with 300+ cases establish at least two. These courts, funded entirely by the central government, must handle only POCSO cases with child-sensitive staff and infrastructure. States were required to complete implementation by 31 January 2020, with courts operational by 1 March 2020. Special emphasis was placed on Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, which had exceptionally high pendency (44,000 and thousands of cases respectively). The Court held that exclusive courts with specialized infrastructure and support staff are essential to protect vulnerable child victims from further trauma during trial.

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