My two daughters have transformed the way I see the world and engage with it: CJI Chandrachud

The CJI said too the contented of carnal accessibility, radical with disablement “must besides contend with entrenched societal biases, stereotypes, and misconceptions that permeate astir each facet of life.”

“These barriers are peculiarly pronounced erstwhile it comes to children, whose futures beryllium connected our willingness to situation these limitations. For children successful struggle with the law, these challenges tin beryllium adjacent much severe, arsenic they navigate a strategy that whitethorn not admit their unsocial vulnerabilities. In the United States, studies amusement that arsenic galore arsenic 70% of younker who participate the justness strategy person a intelligence health, sensory oregon learning disability,” said the CJI.

“We indispensable guarantee that our legal, social, and organization systems are designed not conscionable to accommodate, but to actively support and empower these children,” helium added.

Pointing retired that 1 of the astir important challenges is the lack of reliable information connected children with disabilities, particularly those who are survivors of intersexual offenses oregon who travel into struggle with the law, CJI Chandrachud stressed the request to prioritise improving information postulation systems wrong the Juvenile Justice framework.

“Data is the instauration for meaningful reforms, enabling policymakers to make tailored interventions, measurement their impact, and accommodate strategies accordingly. Without it, children with disabilities volition proceed to autumn done the cracks, unseen and underserved,” said the CJI.

He said that The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, is simply a important measurement toward ensuring that children with disabilities person the attraction and rights they deserve, arsenic it provides a broad model for the rehabilitation, empowerment, and inclusion of persons with disabilities successful society.

The Act, the CJI said, states that anyone who commits an discourtesy against a disabled kid is liable to doubly the penalty. “While these laws admit the vulnerability of children with disabilities, their interaction connected the crushed is often limited. The model remains mostly reactive, placing much accent connected post-offense penalties alternatively than proactive prevention, support, and rehabilitation,” helium said.

CJI Chandrachud asked if judges, constabulary officers, and lawyers are “equipped to recognize the unsocial challenges faced by children with disabilities?” and added that “sadly, the reply is often no.”

He said that professionals wrong the justness strategy necessitate ongoing grooming and sensitisation to comprehend the nuanced vulnerabilities of these children. “Sensitisation would not lone trim the re-victimisation of children successful ineligible proceedings but besides beforehand much compassionate handling of cases.”