The Law Department has issued the notification for the special court to try cases of atrocities against women and children in Kochi. The operation of the court had come to a standstill after it came to light that the government had failed to issue the notification necessary to open the court.
The special court was opened with much fanfare in January this year at Revenue Towers in Kochi.
It was hailed as a step towards speeding up the trials of cases of sexual violence against women and children. A total of 30 cases under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code had been transferred to the court initially and more cases were handed over to it later on.
Some of the cases had been pending trial for more than five years.
Months after the court started functioning, it was discovered that the Law Department had not notified the court due to some official error.
In August, the High Court stayed the regular operation of the court until the notification was issued. Only bail petitions in the cases were heard by the special court since then.
With the notification now in place, the court is expected to get back on track soon.
