Cops trained to deal with POCSO cases

The district legal services authority (DLSA) conducted a workshop on Thursday to train about 100 police officers, especially those investigating cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, on collection of evidence and fixing loopholes in the investigation which may lead to acquittals.

During the workshop, chief judicial magistrate and secretary of DLSA Narender Singh explained the legal procedures to be followed while registering cases under this Act and during the course of the investigation.

“We discussed several judgments where the accused were acquitted due to lack of evidence and lapses in the investigation. We also explained why the police should not resort to arrest just after filing cases,” he said.

The investigators, during the workshop, were made aware of how to collect electronic evidence, such as a hard disk, in a way that prevents any damages to it and its contents until its production in the court.

Deputy district attorney, Gurugram, Anurag Hooda said it was observed that the police officers were not aware of the laws governing the time period of termination of pregnancy in cases of minors’ rape.“Officers were apprised that up to a period of 20 weeks, a minor rape victim can get her pregnancy terminated,” he said.

Police commissioner Muhammad Akil, who also attended the workshop, said the police face multiple challenges in addressing with POCSO cases, such as the age mentioned in the documents that is often found to be incorrect.

“We have constituted committees at every level to ensure a fair probe. If any accused is acquitted due to shoddy investigation, a departmental inquiry will be initiated against the police officer concerned,” he said.