The Delhi High Court has mandated that the Delhi Government finalize the selection procedures for filling vacancies within all Child Welfare Committees (CWCs) and Juvenile Justice Boards (JJBs) in the national capital by April 15th.

In the event that the formalities are not concluded by the specified date, the division bench comprising Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Manoj Jain has stipulated that the Chief Secretary of the Delhi Government must appear before the court on April 25th to provide an explanation for non-compliance with the order.

The bench was presiding over a suo motu public interest litigation that originated in 2018 following a Supreme Court ruling highlighting shortcomings in the enforcement of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015. The recent order was issued in response to a new application filed by Bachpan Bachao Andolan, requesting the court to instruct the Delhi Government to promptly appoint Chairpersons and Members for the vacant positions within the Child Welfare Committees (CWCs) in Delhi within a specified timeframe.

The court received information indicating that a majority of the Child Welfare Committees (CWCs) in the national capital are currently not functioning with their full quorum, a situation mirrored in the Juvenile Justice Boards (JJBs) as well. Additionally, it was brought to the court's attention that according to a circular issued by the Delhi government's Women and Child Development department in November of the previous year, the positions of Chairpersons and a significant number of members in six out of eleven CWCs became vacant as of December 31, 2023, due to the completion of their three-year tenures.

Additionally, it was argued that the six CWCs were functioning with interim acting Chairpersons and had 16 vacant member positions. The counsel representing the Delhi Government stated that the applications were currently under review by the relevant department and emphasized that it would require some time to complete the scrutiny process.

As the counsel for the Delhi Government requested an additional 15 days to fulfill the court's directive, the court issued the following order: "Accordingly, the Government of NCT of Delhi is instructed to finalize all the necessary procedures for the selection process in both Child Welfare Committees (CWCs) and Juvenile Justice Boards (JJBs) on or before April 15, 2024."

Counsel for Petitioner: Mr. Anant Kumar Asthana, Amicus Curiae

Counsel for Respondents: Mrs Avnish Ahlawat, Standing Counsel, GNCTD with Mrs. Taniya Ahlawat, Mr. Nitesh Kumar Singh and Ms. Laavanya Kaushik, Ms. Aliza Alam and Mr. Mohnish Sehrawat, Advocates; Mr. Satyakam, ASC, GNCTD with Mr. Pradyut Kashyap, Advocates; Mr. Vivek Goyal, CGSPC for UOI with Mr. Gokul Sharma and Mr. Shivam Singh, Advocates; Mr. S.K. Sethi, Advocate for DSLSA; Mr. Hemant Mehta, Legal cum Probation Officer from Department of Women & Child Development, GNCTD; Mr. H.S. Phoolka, Senior Advocate with Ms. Prabhsahay Kaur, Ms. Rachna Tyagi, Ms. Taruna Panwar, Ms. Tanvi Singh, Ms. Surpreet Kaur, Ms. Mehak Rankawat and Mr. Bir Inder Singh, Advocates for intervnor Bachpan Bachao Andolan

Title: COURT ON ITS OWN MOTION v. GOVT. OF NCT OF DELHI AND ORS.