Child Sexual Abuse

"Children are living messages, we send to a time, we need not see."     - John F Kennedy Children are the mirror of the future, the statement holds practically well in India, the country of youngsters. In order to flourish at sky limits there is need to protect our children, a protection from various prevalent abuses of society. Great German Philosopher Immanuel Kant once stated that, 'human beings are rational being and are worthy of dignity and respect'. The stated proposition is said to be the foundation of the universal human rights jurisprudence. According to which all human beings including children are equal and autonomous. In this sense it can be argued that, it is the obligation of the state to create an amicable and peaceful environment so that all children can grow and develop themselves. In order to achieve the mentioned purpose, there used to be various governmental efforts at different levels. The founding stones of these efforts can be traced from regional level to international level. The Edicts of Ashoka and  Megna Carta are the great example for such efforts, where people from all across the world have recognized the concept and respect for human rights, its values and application. In modern time the point is further recognized by the various modern national and international documents. These includes Constitution, Human Rights Act, 1996, Juvenile Justice Act, Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, (UDHR), United Nations Convention on Right of the Child, (CRC) respectively. Constitution of India guarantees the right to equality, liberty and dignity of individuals including children. Article 21 of the Constitution elaborately talks about the right to life with dignity. The interpretation of this article leads to a very wide ambit as it has been stated as the soul of the part III of Indian Constitution. The reason for the same is that there are various connecting rights supported or governed by the said article. Here according to interpretation right to life includes the right to childhood and its enjoyment. This is further contingent to right to hygiene and health. It is further linked to friendly ambience/environment. It can further be related to right to education, as guaranteed under Art 21 A of the constitution. The web of all these mentioned rights must act smoothly, away from any conflict. It is only then there is possibility of achieve the destination called justice for innocent children. Hence in order to fulfill the stated commitments, Article 15(3) empowers the state to make special provisions for children and their better future. Similarly after signing the CRC, it became our commitment and priority to follow the different prescribed standards in the best interest of the Child. In order to achieve the same we have enhanced enacted series of legislations related to  3 P's Principles (Author's Idea) (Preservation, Protection, Progress of Children) and the Protection Of Children From Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO) is one of them. It specifically talks about the 'proper development of the child'; 'her right to Privacy'; and 'Confidentiality' and their protection during any judicial process. It guarantees the Physical, Emotional, Intellectual and Social Development of the Child.