A Study on the Juvenile Justice Act, 2000 and Its Significance

Abstract

The Juvenile Justice Act, 2000 has indubitably been a savior for the rights of the children; however sometimes, the conflict of law with juveniles is there to stay, which is when inequity is doled out by the black quill on dull scrolls. Law without justice, after all, is nothing but a tarnished flesh-wound gaping at the dishonor it brings. On 17th July, 2013, the Supreme Court of India dismissed pleas to reduce the age for juveniles from 18 to 16.

The plea was a combination of seven writ petitions heard together which challenged the constitutionality of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2000 in response to which, the court refused to hold the act as ultra vires the constitution. Even though, this decision of the court was widely appreciated by one segment of the society due the virtue of it being an equitable safeguard of public morality and children’s rights, the counter-offensive believed that this judgment is detrimental to holistic justice. 

With the recent legal skirmish between the Apex Court and the people propounding equitable relief to all, focus has been shifted on either the lowering of the age of the juvenile or the categorical exemption of the children in the age bracket of 16 to 18 being exempted from the jurisdiction of the Juvenile Justice Act.