Reshaping India’s Juvenile Justice Framework

India’s juvenile justice framework is at a critical juncture, with a decade of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 [JJ Act, 2015] revealing both progress and persistent challenges. The Act introduced the “transfer system,” allowing juveniles aged 16 and above accused of heinous offences to be tried as adults under specific conditions, marking a shift from pure rehabilitation towards accountability for serious crimes. However, a Private Member’s Bill introduced in December 2025 proposes to lower this threshold from 16 to 14 years, raising urgent concerns about the balance between justice, rehabilitation and child rights.

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