The Bombay high court (HC) recently directed the state to fill up vacant posts of social activists in the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB), while hearing a public interest litigation which stated the orders passed by the JJB be set aside, as the board has been functioning without proper quorum (composition).
A division bench of chief justice Bhushan Dharmadhikari and justice Nitin Borkar, while hearing the PIL filed by Dr Dipak Kumar Chattopadhyay, an advocate and former member of the JJB, was informed that juvenile courts across the state were functioning without proper quorum. Dr Chattopadhyay submitted that as per the Juvenile Justice Act, the board had to have three members, magistrate as the principal member, and two other social workers, one of whom should be a woman.
“A notification issued by the women and child development department on January 23, 2019 stated that members had been appointed to nine JJBs across the state and the boards had started functioning,” the PIL stated.
A query under the Right to Information Act, however, showed that the JJBs were functioning with only one member, the magistrate, the petition claimed, citing the example of the juvenile court in suburban Mumbai which had cleared 594 cases and the Mumbai city court clearing 434 cases.
Chattopadhyay submitted: “The usurping of all power by the principal magistrate constituting the one-member bench and passing orders is grossly illegal and unethical activity that cannot be allowed to be continued.” As the orders in the cleared cases were passed without a proper quorum, the same should be set aside and members should be appointed so that they may take up the hearing of the cleared cases afresh.
{{/usCountry}}Chattopadhyay submitted: “The usurping of all power by the principal magistrate constituting the one-member bench and passing orders is grossly illegal and unethical activity that cannot be allowed to be continued.” As the orders in the cleared cases were passed without a proper quorum, the same should be set aside and members should be appointed so that they may take up the hearing of the cleared cases afresh.
{{/usCountry}}After hearing the submissions, the bench directed the state and the women and child development department to reply to the allegations and also directed the state to ensure the posts were filled. The matter will come up for hearing in due course.
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