“For ten years we have counted cases; for the next ten, let us count lives rebuilt.”
Justice Surya Kant, Chief Justice of India
On 10 October 2026, the Supreme Court of India hosted the first day of the two-day National Annual Stakeholders Consultation on “Ten Years of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015: Progress, Challenges and Priorities for the Next Decade”. Organised by the Juvenile Justice Committee of the Supreme Court of India in association with UNICEF India, the consultation brought together members of the judiciary, State judicial and administrative authorities, child-protection specialists, legal academics and civil society representatives to examine the implementation of the Act over the past decade.
The inaugural proceedings focused on the rehabilitative foundations of juvenile justice, delays before Juvenile Justice Boards (JJBs), access to specialised legal representation, and the need for institutional accountability through longitudinal data and outcome-based evaluations.
Justice B.V. Nagarathna: “When a Child Breaks the Law, the Law Must Not Break the Child”
In her opening remarks, Justice B.V. Nagarathna, Judge, Supreme Court of India and Chairperson of the Juvenile Justice Committee, reiterated the central philosophy of juvenile jurisprudence: “when a child breaks the law, the law must not break the child”.
Referring to Section 3 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, Justice Nagarathna highlighted the principles of presumption of innocence, non-stigmatising semantics and institutionalisation as a measure of last resort. She emphasised that Juvenile Justice Boards are not miniature criminal courts.
Drawing attention to the India Justice Report (November 2025), Justice Nagarathna noted that, by late 2023, 55% of cases before JJBs across 18 States and two Union Territories were pending. Over 55,000 children were awaiting decisions, while 24% of the responding Boards were functioning without a full bench.
She further underscored that disposal of a case cannot, by itself, be equated with the rehabilitation of a child. Individualised and holistic care plans remain necessary to ensure that the process results in meaningful rehabilitation.
Justice Nagarathna also acknowledged the annual data submissions compiled by High Court Juvenile Justice Committees and State Governments since 2023, observing that longitudinal data provides an empirical baseline for identifying and scaling successful local practices.
Chief Justice of India Releases Landmark Judicial e-Compendium
During the inaugural session, the Chief Justice of India released the e-Compendium of Landmark Judgments of the Supreme Court of India and High Courts relating to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. The compendium captures jurisprudential developments from 2015 to September 2026.
In his inaugural address, the Chief Justice of India observed that ten years represents more than half of a childhood. He emphasised that the expression “child in conflict with law” describes a circumstance, not an identity.
Referring to Articles 15(3) and 39 of the Constitution of India and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Chief Justice underscored that the response under the Act must remain restorative rather than retributive, with institutional confinement treated as a strict last resort.
Dedicated Defence Wings and Inter-Agency Training
Highlighting the need for specialised legal representation, the Chief Justice of India observed that many JJBs continue to lack legal aid clinics under NALSA’s Child-Friendly Legal Services Scheme, 2024. He urged Legal Services Institutions to establish a dedicated cadre or wing of specialised defence counsel for children, ensuring continuous representation from apprehension at the police station through final orders and rehabilitation.
He also called for joint inter-agency training involving Judicial Academies, Police Academies and psychologists, emphasising that frontline functionaries must not be trained in separate silos.
The Chief Justice further stressed the urgent need to fill vacancies of Probation Officers to facilitate the preparation of comprehensive Social Investigation Reports.
On the protection of children from long-term stigma, he called for the timely expungement or destruction of records and strict digital privacy safeguards. He also highlighted the need for independent empirical evaluations to track how many children successfully return to school and stable livelihoods.
The introductory remarks were delivered by Cynthia McCaffrey, Country Representative, UNICEF India, who reaffirmed UNICEF’s partnership with the Indian judiciary in promoting child-friendly procedures, diversion from formal penal processes and protective community environments.
Technical Session I: Rights of Children in Conflict with Law and Preliminary Assessments
The first technical session, chaired by Justice J.B. Pardiwala, Judge, Supreme Court of India and Member of the Juvenile Justice Committee, examined substantive and procedural safeguards available to children in conflict with law.
Professor (Dr) Srikrishna Deva Rao, Vice-Chancellor, NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad, addressed preliminary assessments under Section 15 of the Act, focusing on procedural standards, psycho-social evaluations and developmental considerations in the assessment of children aged 16 to 18 years in cases involving alleged heinous offences.
Swagata Raha, Director—Research, Enfold Proactive Health Trust, and Sharmila Ray, Child Protection Specialist, UNICEF India, deliberated on frontline procedural compliance, diversion mechanisms and systemic measures to eliminate unnecessary confinement.
Technical Session II: Children in Need of Care and Protection, with Special Reference to Adoption
The second technical session, chaired by Justice A.S. Chandurkar, Judge, Supreme Court of India and Member of the Juvenile Justice Committee, examined child-protection mechanisms and non-institutional alternative care.
Bhavna Saxena, IPS, Member Secretary and CEO, Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA), presented an operational overview of domestic adoption trends, administrative timelines and efforts to expedite declarations of children as legally free for adoption.
Senior Advocate Anil Malhotra examined the regulatory and judicial framework governing inter-country adoption, including its interface with private international law under the Act and statutory regulations.
Sheema Sengupta, UNICEF Global Director of Child Protection, presented international comparative perspectives on the evidentiary shift towards foster care and family preservation as alternatives to institutional placements.
Technical Session III: State-Wise Implementation and Best Practices
The afternoon session examined implementation across six States and Union Territories. It was chaired by Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad, Judge and Chairperson, Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court of Jharkhand, and co-chaired by Justice Moushumi Bhattacharya, Judge and Chairperson, Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court for the State of Telangana.
The participating States and Union Territories presented their respective implementation experiences and best practices through the following judicial and administrative representatives:
-
Tamil Nadu: Justice G. Jayachandran, Judge and Chairperson, Juvenile Justice Committee, Madras High Court, and M. Pallavi Baldev, IAS, Secretary, Social Welfare and Women Empowerment Department.
-
Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh: Justice Sindhu Sharma, Judge and Chairperson, Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
-
Delhi: Justice Jyoti Singh, Judge and Chairperson, Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court of Delhi, and Dr. Rashmi Singh, IAS, Secretary, Department of Women and Child Development, Government of NCT of Delhi.
-
Gujarat: Justice Sangeeta K. Vishen, Judge and Chairperson, Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court of Gujarat, and Harshad R. Patel, IAS, Secretary, Department of Social Justice and Empowerment.
-
Odisha: Justice Savitri Ratho, Judge and Chairperson, Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court of Orissa, and Dr. Mrinalini Darswal, IAS, Secretary, Department of Women and Child Development.
-
Uttarakhand: Justice Rakesh Thapliyal, Judge and Chairperson, Juvenile Justice Committee, High Court of Uttarakhand, and Chandresh Kumar Yadav, IAS, Secretary, Department of Women Empowerment and Child Development.
