ABSTRACT
This chapter tries to understand the recent developments in juvenile justice policies in India. It investigates the nuances in the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, with respect to juvenile delinquents. The tragic 2012 Delhi gang rape case triggered a substantive debate over the inadequacy of the youth justice law in the country to effectively intervene with adolescents who are a legitimate threat to public safety. The Nirbhaya rape case stood as one of the most horrific in the rape culture in India, and rightly so, for two reasons: first, the soaring degree of mental maturity displayed by the juvenile and second, the methodical manner in which he committed the crime. Adolescence is generally recognized as the ‘period of transition’ between childhood and adulthood, whereby an individual experiences significant growth and change.
