Avoid arresting teenage boys under POCSO Act for dating minor girls, Uttarakhand HC tells state
‘At the most, he can be called for giving advice not to indulge in these things, but he should not be arrested,’ the order said.
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Minor boys should not be arrested under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act for going out on dates with minor girls, the Uttarakhand High Court said in a recent order, reported Bar and Bench on Friday.
A bench of Chief Justice Ritu Bahri and Justice Rakesh Thapliyal passed the order on July 1 while hearing a plea seeking directions to the state to examine the issue of minors getting arrested for going on dates.
The petition contended that boys should not be arrested on the complaint made by the parents of the girl, since there is no offence made under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
The division bench said that the state can examine the issue of whether recording the statement under section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure would be sufficient not to arrest the boy, who had gone on a date with a girl, reported Bar and Bench.
“At the most, he can be called for giving him advice not to indulge in these things, but he should not be arrested,” the order said. “The state can examine this issue and issue a general directions for the police department.”
The petition had contended that once the parents of teenagers come to know that their children are in...
