The protection of children from sexual offences act, 2012: an overview and intricacies

Exploitation is one of the most common offences in any country, and sexual exploitation is increasing yearly. Among different types of sexual exploitation, child sexual abuse is one of the most typical types affecting the marginalized group. To deal with the advancement in the cases of child sexual assault and harassment, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses (POCSO) Act was enacted in 2021. The POCSO act focuses on protecting children's interests through every step of the judicial process. In this act, child-centric mechanisms for recording evidence, reporting, examination, investigation, and conducting speedy trials in designated special courts have been focused on and emphasized. This review article is intended to understand an overview of the protection of Children from Sexual Offenses and the intricacies of the POCSO act. Five different case laws are discussed in this article. Though the POCSO Act 2012 is an excellent piece of legislation that recognizes almost every known form of sexual abuse against children as a punishable offence, a few challenges remain to be answered. A multi-dimensional, multi-agency team and multi-tier approach is needed for hours.

Keywords: Child abuse; case law; intricacies; prevention.