Despite Fast Track Special Courts, WB Has 48,600 Rape And POCSO Cases Pending: Centre

(MENAFN- Live Mint) New Delhi: Despite allocating Fast Track Special Courts (FTSC), the West Bengal government has got a pendency of 48,600 rape and POCSO cases, the centre government targets the TMC run state authorities for failing to implement crucial safety measures for women and girls.

The state's inability to operationalise the Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) allocated to it under a centrally sponsored scheme, despite a significant backlog of cases related to sexual offences, was noted by Women and Child Development Minister Annapurna Devi in a letter written to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on August 25. A copy of the letter has been seen by the Mint. The minister also emphasised the urgency of implementing strict legal frameworks and judicial processes to ensure the safety and security of women and children in West Bengal.

"As regards Fast Track Special Courts, it is stated that for expeditious trial and disposal of pending cases pertaining to Rape and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, in a time bound manner, a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (60:40 sharing basis) i.e Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) scheme was launched in October 2019. As of 30.06.2024, 752 FTSCs including 409 exclusive POCSO are functional in 30 states and UTs which have disposed of more than 2,53,000 cases since the inception of the scheme," the letter read

Under the scheme, the state of West Bengal was allocated a total of 123 FTSCs which included 20 exclusive POCSO courts and 103 combined FTSCs dealing with both rape and POCSO act cases. However, none of these courts had been operationalised till mid-June 2023.

MENAFN26082024007365015876ID1108601104