Four Child Friendly Courts inaugurated in West Bengal

Four Child Friendly Courts were inaugurated in West Bengal Saturday to create a congenial atmosphere for juveniles.

The children constitute 40 per cent of the country's population and courts specifically catering to sensitivities and needs of children must be established, Supreme Court judge Justice Madan B Lokur said while inaugurating the state's first Child Friendly Court at Bankshall court here.

"The number of juvenile offenders in the country is in the region of 30,000, but that of juveniles against whom crime has been committed is 90,000," Justice Lokur said.

Stating that the number of children against whom crime has been committed is three times more than those who have been involved in offences, Justice Lokur said all out efforts must be made to give the children a good life.

Referring to the alleged rape of 34 children at a shelter home in Bihar's Muzaffarpur, he said "some of these girls didn't even know that they were raped and there may be many more victims than those who have been identified."
Calcutta High Court Chief Justice Jyotirmoy Bhattacharya said "even after 71 years of independence, we cannot protect our children."