JVI’s Justice Hub in West Bengal recently experienced a notable legal victory when a trafficking case involving a perpetrator who was a minor was transferred to the trial court (from the Juvenile Justice Court), due to the perpetrator’s complicity in the heinous crime.
In 2018, 15-year-old Nita* was lured into trafficking by another girl who was also a minor. Nita was eventually forced into commercial sex exploitation in West Bengal until her rescue. The main perpetrator of the crimes against Nita was technically a minor, as the trafficker was 17 years and 11 months old at the time of the rescue and arrest. Thus, the perpetrator was deemed a “child in conflict with the law” under India’s Juvenile Justice Act and presented to the Juvenile Justice Court for her crimes, with all the protections thereof.
In 2022, Justice Hub lawyers filed a petition under the Juvenile Justice Act arguing that Nita’s main trafficker, while technically a minor, should be tried as an adult for offenses as heinous as human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation. The lawyers have spent the past two years putting forth arguments before the Juvenile Justice Board for the transfer of the case to the main trial court. Finally, on February 5, 2024, the Court passed an order finding that, based on psychological evaluations of the perpetrator and victim statements, the main perpetrator had full capacity and knowledge of her actions. The case was accordingly transferred to the trial court, and it is hoped that Nita will obtain the justice she deserves.
*Name changed to protect identity
