High pendency, acquittal rate deny justice to victims in Pocso cases

Cops unaware which cases require forensic analysis, filed chargesheet in 65% cases in '22

- SUBASHINI VIJAYAKUMAR @ Chennai

ALTHOUGH better awareness and reporting of child sexual abuse cases under the Pocso Act has led to an increase in reported cases by 52% in Tamil Nadu, justice remains elusive for children as thousands of cases are pending in the courts and police investigations.

Activists stressed the need to address the rising number of acquittals and the overwhelming backlog of cases. The Supreme Court mandates exclusive Pocso courts in districts where pending cases exceed 100. Currently, 19 districts in TN have Pocso courts, with plans to establish two more. Yet, in many districts such as Salem and Madurai, the number of pending cases exceeded 500 in 2022, while Chennai had over 600 pending cases.

With the surge in reported cases—4,581 in 2023 and 6,975 in 2024—the backlog is likely to have worsened. Activists argued that additional courts must be set up in districts where the caseload is high.

The rate of police disposal of cases is also a concern, with chargesheets filed in 3,258 (65.5%) out of 4,968 cases in 2022 and in 2,418 (54.14%) out of 4,465 cases in 2021.