The Delhi High Court on Tuesday ordered the Centre, the city government and the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) to give details of the steps taken by them to rescue and rehabilitate children begging on the streets of the Capital.
“I have completed two months in Delhi. I drive a car on my own and see the same set of young children every day on the same roads. You are talking about results in one day. For the last two months, I am observing it,” Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma said. DCPCR’s counsel said the authorities have been working round-the-clock and taking action.
Eight weeks’ time
The High Court’s observation came while hearing a public interest litigation seeking eradication of child begging. It granted eight weeks to the authorities to disclose the steps taken by them zone-wise in the entire Delhi to rescue and rehabilitate children found begging on the streets. The HC posted the case for further hearing on December 2.
The petition filed by one Ajay Gautamm has sought directions to authorities to rehabilitate children who are beggars and to identify and arrest persons who are “pushing women using toddlers, teenage girls and minors into begging and crime, and exploiting young girls”.
Authorities’ failure
He has alleged that in spite of the presence of beggars in every part of the city, the authorities have failed to take any remedial steps to curb the menace.
The court was informed by the Centre and Delhi Police that they will take appropriate steps in this regard. The DCPCR counsel submitted that they have been carrying out periodical checks and rescuing and rehabilitating children found begging on streets.
“It has been commonly seen in winters that young girls hold toddlers without clothes to gain maximum sympathy. It is also not out of context to mention here that in many cases these gangs/mafias and young girls intentionally give sedatives to children to gather sympathy of people risking lives of toddlers as young as 9-12 months”, the petition said.
