Age of consent under POCSO must remain

• The government should not tinker with the age of consent currently 18 years under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, the Law Commission said in a report
• Instead, it advised the introduction of “guided judicial discretion” while sentencing in cases that involve the tacit approval of children in the 16 to 18 years age bracket.

Tacit approval

• In the report, the Law panel noted that certain amendments would be required in the POCSO Act, 2012 to remedy the situation in cases involving tacit approval, though not consent under law, on the part of children aged between 16 and 18 years.
• reference was made by the Madhya Pradesh High Court (Gwalior Bench) in April this year,
• the Court noted that the enforcement of the POCSO Act, in its present form, “causes injustice in cases of statutory rape where de facto consent is present”.

Reporting crime in real time

• The Law Commission also submitted a report (no. 282) in which it recommended amending Section 154 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973
  • In order to roll out the registration of e-FIRs in a phased manner, beginning with offences that attract a jail term of up to three years.

Prelims Takeaway

• Law Commission