UN Human Rights Charter has a prominent chapter on the Rights of Women and Rights of Children. By and large, all democratic countries in the world have incorporated Rights of Children in their constitution. Additionally, these rights have been comprehensively explained so that no confusion prevails in allowing the children to enjoy these rights. Child rights are rigorously enforced in advanced democracies.
The subject of children’s rights came up before the states when it came to the notice of international community at the United Nations that some societies denied girl child the right to education. This denial still persists in some primitive cultures even today. World attention was markedly focused on another obnoxious aspect of violation of children’s rights when it was revealed that under-age children, both males and females, were hired for physical labour in factories. They were made to work in very unhygienic conditions, overtime and were underpaid. A number of reputed NGOs exposed many manufacturing units that employed teen agers and meted out atrocious treatment to them. Some of the factories producing chemical material highly harmful to human beings also employed small children without providing them protective cover during work hours. In our country and our State, the scenario of small children of poor families collecting polythene bags and litter by rummaging heaps of refuses which not only stink bad but also could be the hot bed of infection is commonplace. It is to be seen almost in every city and every town. This is blatant violation of the rights of children.
We know that under an order of the Supreme Court of India issued in 2012, all States of the Union, including ours, were supposed to implement the Juvenile Justice Act constituting Juvenile Justice Board and Child Welfare Committee in every district within a period of six weeks. Implementation of the SC order fell in the jurisdiction of Social Welfare Department in our State. However, curiously there was no serious attention from the Social Welfare Department in this regard on the pretext that the law governing the subject in J&K was not in consonance with the Central law and amendment was required to be conducted in the State law. Now if a judicial issue had come up, the proper and natural course was that the law in force ought to have been amended to become compatible with the directive of the Supreme Court. That exercise was delayed for a long time. Why the State Government chose to show scant interest in giving the serious issue of the rights of children its due importune remains unexplained. Finally in 2013, the law was amended albeit with much delay and the J&K Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act was enacted. But this did not mean that what was actually desired had been achieved. Regrettably still no attention was paid towards either implementation of provisions of this Act or directions of Supreme Court. The position in our State in this context is that neither the provisions of Juvenile Justice Act are enforced nor are the directives of the Supreme Court shown due respect. Therefore, the children in J&K State continue to remain unprotected by Judicial authority. One wonders whether vested interests are in play in J&K State so that the rights of children are not given legal status.
It is a pity that no NGO in the State has taken up this issue seriously with the Government. Not only that much, abuse of children especially of female children and sexual assaults on them have generally gone unnoticed. It is the duty of NGOs to focus on these social evils. In our country, sexual assault and abuse of children has become cancerous. The Government cannot close its eyes on a grave social aberration phenomenon. We have the legal mechanism of processing legal action against the violators of children rights. All conscientious citizens should rise against violation and abuse of the rights of children. That is the sign of a progressive and humanistic society
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