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1h ago

Supreme Court Dismisses NCPCR Plea for Lack of Locus, Cautions Against Mechanical POCSO Use

By finding the child-rights panel lacked standing, the bench left the personal law versus child-protection conflict to be resolved in a properly framed case.

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The high court had earlier held that Muslim girls can marry on their own volition once they reach puberty, usually at 15. (HT file photo)
The Supreme Court bench noted that there is a distinction between exploitative criminal conduct and “romantic bonds” between teenagers.

Overview

  • Justices B.V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan ruled that the NCPCR was a stranger to the litigation and could not challenge a Punjab and Haryana High Court order granting protection to a Muslim couple.
  • The High Court had relied on Muslim personal law presuming puberty at 15 to hold the 16-year-old girl competent to marry and extended protection to the couple under Article 226.
  • The bench emphasized that consensual adolescent relationships should not be treated like criminal sexual offences and warned against invoking POCSO mechanically in genuine ‘romantic’ cases.
  • Several similar petitions, including by NCPCR and NCW, were dismissed, and the court remarked the commission should take up better causes.
  • With the dismissal, an earlier 2023 direction that such High Court rulings not be treated as precedent effectively lapsed, even as the Union Government maintains opposition to lowering the statutory age of consent.