The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 came into Force

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 came into force on 14 November 2012. The Act was passed in the Indian Parliament in May 2012. The Act under its ambit defines child as a person below the age-group of 18 and is gender neutral and have a clear definition for all types of sexual abuses like sexual harassment, penetrative or non-penetrative sexual abuse, and pornography.

The Act also has defined the punishments following the kind and harshness of the offence that includes life time imprisonment for heinous crimes of sexual assaults and abuses. The Act under its ambit has tried to set up the standards of International Child Protection rights and has made it mandatory to report the sexual offences against any child. Punishment against the person trying the allegedly defame any person that also includes a child via false information is mentioned in this Act.

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 has defined the ways to provide a child friendly process of offence reporting to evidence recording, trial and investigations. Section 45 of the Act allows the Union Government to make the necessary changes in the Act, whenever and wherever applicable.

The Act has also defined the facts like qualification and experience of the translators, interpreters, special educators, experts, arrangement for protection and care at times of emergencies and emergency treatment of child as well as the  Compensation amount that is payable to any victim of sexual abuse. This Act has also cleared that the provisions of this Act would be monitored by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights and the State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, periodically.  

All the rules have been structured and framed relying upon the Juvenile Act, 2000 for making arrangements in regards to the care and protection of the child, the devised rules of the act also would pay attention to the fact that the child is not re-victimised at time of investigation as well as trial. The Act has also made it clear that under situations in which the child who is being taken for the medical facility on an emergency factor no documentation or magisterial requisition would be demanded before the treatment.

The Rules laid down in the Act also had defined the criterion of awarding the compensations by the special court that includes loss of educational and employment opportunities along with disability, disease or pregnancy suffered by the subject as the consequence of the abuse. This compensation would be awarded at the interim stage as well as after the trial ends.