Stop incarcerating delinquent children

The National Human Rights Commissioner's statement on how we are handling children accused of having committed a crime should be taken into cognisance. His emphasis on setting free a child even in case of a non-bailable offence, as per children act 2013 in light of international laws, again reaches to the heart of the problem with our current practices. 

The only exception when a child should be assigned to juvenile centre instead is if the child is convicted over a severe offence and there is suspicion that further crimes will be committed. The authorities that deal with these issues especially should take this into consideration, particularly given the facilities, or lack thereof, available at our juvenile centres and correctional facilities. Otherwise, many a young life may be wasted in the days to come, as it is difficult to see how a young child can adjust to life, having gone through the correctional facilities available in our country. 

A case in point, as reported in a national daily, is that of two children accused of murdering a third. Deeper investigation revealed gross violation of procedures by law enforcers and alleged torture of the two leading to false confessions. 

Surely, a child accused of having committed a crime cannot be treated the same as an adult. They must be corrected in a more human and sensitive way because if, in the process, they are damaged irreparably, an individual will forever be lost to society.