Recently, three underage boys were arrested for allegedly raping a six-year-old girl Delhi’s Bhajanpura There was another case in the area involving a 17-year-old relative sexually abused and murdered a seven-year-old girl and later threw her into a canal, resulting in her death. If you look deeper into it, you will realize that these two incidents are not isolated cases. They are forcing India to come to grips with its troubling reality. It is a disturbing reminder of the increasing number of children who sexually abuse other children.
Normally, the Indian public comes forward to provide justice to the survivors; In such cases there is usually an uncomfortable silence. There is silence about how these minors who have become perpetrators of sexual violence are treated under the law. Well, there is no clear answer, and if there is, it requires a balanced form of justice, accountability and prevention.
The little discussed but growing crisis
The data suggests that with each passing day, minors are becoming perpetrators of sexual violence. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), there are a significant number of Sexual assault cases under the protection of children from sexual crimes (POCSO) Act are involved with young offenders. In many cases, these perpetrators are known to the victim, sometimes as relatives, neighbors or acquaintances. Imagine someone you know committing a heinous act like this, challenging the concept of “stranger danger” in this narrative.
The Bhajanpura and Barwani cases reinforce this grim truth. When sexual violence comes from family circles, it complicates the already complicated legal process and society’s understanding of the crime.
The Bhajanpura and Barwani cases reinforce this grim truth. When sexual violence comes from family circles, it complicates the already complicated legal process and society’s understanding of the crime. Our society is already grappling with this duality: that minors are legally children and how can children commit acts of violence?
Where does India stand in the legal framework?
In India, juvenile crimes are regulated by the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. The law distinguishes between crimes and divides them into three categories: minor, serious and heinous. Sexual assault and rape fall under the category of heinous crimes. This category includes crimes that are punishable by a prison sentence of seven years or more.
Under the JJ Act 2015, minors between the ages of 16 and 18 years accused of heinous crimes can be tried as adults after a first-hand assessment by the JJ Board. The task of this body is to assess the mental and physical capacity of the minor who committed the said crime. In addition, they are also aware of the consequences and circumstances of the crime. In addition, the POCSO Act deals with sexual offenses against children and focuses primarily on the protection of the survivors and strict punishment of the perpetrators. To our surprise, the POCSO Act does not adequately take into account if the accused is also a minor.
FII
These legal overlaps lead to procedural delays and ethical dilemmas. So the question arises: Can the justice system prioritize punishment when dealing with juvenile sex offenders?
The debate between punishment and rehabilitation
After reading the above, one might question whether juvenile offenders should be tried as adults (especially for such brutal crimes), but Criminal research and child psychology have a different perspective. Research suggests that a child’s cognitive development is incomplete and they are unable to control impulses, assess risks and understand long-term consequences.
Treating minors solely as adult criminals risks overlooking underlying factors such as exposure to violence, lack of sex education, toxic gender conditioning, and socioeconomic vulnerabilities. Rehabilitation programs, counseling and behavioral interventions can play a critical role in preventing repeat offenses. Treating minors as adults shows that certain factors such as exposure to violence, lack of sex education, toxic gender conditioning and socioeconomic vulnerabilities are ignored. To prevent such crimes, counseling and behavioral interventions, both at home and at school, can play a critical role.
But yes, the justice of the survivors must not be jeopardized. Survivors of child abuse need legal closure, psychological support, and recognition of the harm done to them. The legal system should strive for a difficult but balanced form of justice. This ensures accountability while recognizing the possibility of reform for juvenile offenders.
The need for social conditioning
There should be an open legal discussion about juvenile sexual offenses that should not be limited to courtrooms and news channels. There should be one Examining children’s attitudes toward gender, power, and consent. When examining cases, it is often found that juvenile offenders grow up in places where consent is non-existent, misogyny is normalized and violence is a means of asserting masculinity. Easy access to sex education content on social media also plays a huge role in young minds and their understanding of a female body. To address this problem, we need interventions from schools, families and communities. Sometimes it seems that everyone is against rape, but teaching sex education brings shame in Indian households.
Indian households are hesitant to adopt sex education, and this remains one of the most serious gaps in sexual offense prevention. Teenagers rely on peer misinformation, pornography and social media to understand intimacy and relationships.
Indian households are hesitant to adopt sex education, and this remains one of the most serious gaps in sexual offense prevention. Teenagers rely on peer misinformation, pornography and social media to understand intimacy and relationships. Comprehensive sex education is not only about explaining to children about sexual intercourse, how a fetus becomes a baby, and shedding the uterine lining with sanitary napkins (which we all learned in grades 8 and 10), but also about understanding consent, emotional competence, and respect for boundaries (which was missing from our biology classes).
Without such conversations, children are left alone to deal with complex biological and emotional changes they feel in their bodies, and sometimes this leads to harmful criminal behavior that no one expected from a boy studying mathematics.
Another neglected aspect of legal discussions is the need for structured psychological rehabilitation of juvenile offenders. Many children who commit sexual offenses may themselves have a history of abuse, neglect or violence. Another important factor that is neglected when dealing with the psychological conditioning of juvenile offenders is the understanding of the child’s psyche. The Indian legal system should have therapeutic interventions that focus on behavioral correction and trauma resolution. This can reduce relapse rates. We know there is a shortage of adequate mental health professionals and counselors in the juvenile justice system. [Watch the 2025 Adolescence to understand the need for a good mental health practitioner.]
Justice for the survivors is non-negotiable
Discussions about young offenders are necessary, but should never push the rights of the survivors into the background. When a young child experiences such trauma, they face lifelong mental health issues, social stigma, and the court process re-traumatizes them during the trial period. There is therefore a need for expedited courts, survivor-oriented investigations and access to advice is also crucial. This is where the family can play the most important role in supporting the bereaved rather than silencing them due to social stigma.
The Barwani case, in which the accused was a relative, highlights another unpleasant reality: sexual violence often occurs in the domestic or family sphere. Parental supervision, open communication and early gender sensitization play a crucial role in prevention. The Barwani case, in which the accused was a relative, reflects another unpleasant reality and calls into question the entire strange danger narrative.
Many parents avoid talking to their children about consent and body safety. There can be many reasons for this, such as discomfort and cultural taboos. However, reports suggest that homeschooled children are having second thoughts Body safety and sex education are better able to understand that they are being abused and try to report it. Outside the home, school-based workshops, local child protection committees, and community-based programs can create a protective environment for children around them.
The cases of Bhajanpura and Barwani are a tragic reminder that child protection cannot be viewed through the simplistic binary of victim and perpetrator. When a minor commits a crime, society should deal with his mistakes. Failures in education, upbringing, gender socialization and mental health. Of course, the legal framework needs to evolve and we need to deal with such complexities. The goal should not be punishment, but transformation. Ultimately, we must ensure that violence against one child does not result in lifelong damage to multiple lives.