West Bengal to setup 5 POCSO court

Recent horrific incident in West Bengal hospital which shook the nation, aftermath of this case West Bengal cabinet proposes to set up a POCSO (Protection of children from sexual offenses) Fast track special court to fast track the cases related to these cases.

What are Fast-track special courts?

• Fast-track special courts (FTSCs) are much more efficient than other courts in handling rape cases and those related to the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
• The Department of Justice is implementing a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, to set up Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) including exclusive POCSO Courts across the nation for expeditious trials relating to sexual offenses.

Structure of court

Each court comprises 1 Judicial Officer and 7 Staff Members.

Status of court

• In India total 757 FTSCs are functional including 411 exclusive e-POCSO are functional across the 30 state and union territories.
• According to data available this court has disposed of more than 214000 cases since its establishment.
• As per data available West Bengal has currently 62 Fast track special courts, further establishment of 5 POCSO FSTCs will reach the tally around 67 courts in the state.

Why are FSTCs a ray of hope?

• A report announced on the FSTCs functioning, the report mentioned that nearly 52% cases have been disposed of since the inception of the scheme in 2018. And the disposal rate keeps improving nearly 80% to 90%.
• As per report Maharashtra and Punjab disposed cases strike rate is good with comparison to other states.
• The report said that India needs more than 1000 FSTCs for justice to the victims in POCSO cases.