The Supreme Court has made strong remarks in a case where a minor was kept in Agra Central Jail along with adult prisoners. The court has called it a violation of child protection laws and the basic principles of constitutional guarantees. After the court's rebuke, the Uttar Pradesh government has decided to give a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the minor victim.
Justice J.K. Maheshwari and Justice A.S. Chandurkar's bench said in its order that this case is a major failure of the system to protect the rights of children who come in conflict with the law. “This is a case where a minor, despite being declared a minor, was wrongly put in a regular jail containing adult prisoners due to lack of communication, insensitivity and inhuman approach on the part of the authorities,” the bench said.
The Supreme Court clearly said that keeping any minor with adult prisoners is completely unacceptable under the law. The court also said that such imprisonment is a serious attack on the basic principles of child protection laws and constitutional guarantees. Instead of being limited to just the UP government, the Supreme Court has issued a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the entire country. The court directed that this SOP should be sent to all other states also so that no such case is repeated in future. Also, the court will keep an eye on this matter to ensure that all states follow it.
In fact, the accused was a minor on the day of the incident, yet he was kept in Agra Central Jail along with adult prisoners. This incident is being considered a serious violation of child protection laws. Now, after the strict stance of the Supreme Court, the Uttar Pradesh government has announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the victim.
