Kishtwar, Aug 22 (JKNS): The District Child Protection Officer (DCPO), Mission Vatsalya, Kishtwar, has issued a strict public advisory prohibiting the disclosure, publication, broadcasting or circulation of the identities and personal details of minor children, particularly victims of sexual offences and children in conflict with law or in need of care and protection.
The advisory, issued on August 21, as per news agency JKNS, follows concerns over the publication and circulation of photographs, videos, names, residential addresses, school details, parentage and other identifying particulars of minors through print and electronic media, news portals and social media platforms.
According to the notice, such disclosures infringe upon the privacy, dignity and safety of children and may aggravate their psychological trauma. It also refers to the mandatory statutory safeguards and directives of the Supreme Court of India in Nipun Saxena & Anr. v. Union of India & Ors.
The DCPO has specifically drawn attention to Section 23 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, which prohibits media reporting or visual presentation that reveals the identity of a child victim, including details such as name, address, photograph, family background, neighbourhood, school or any other particulars that could lead to identification.
The notice states that violation of the provision may attract imprisonment of not less than six months, extendable up to one year, or fine, or both.
The advisory also cites Section 74 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, which prohibits disclosure of the name, address, school, photograph or any other particulars that may lead to the identification of a Child in Conflict with Law (CCL) or Child in Need of Care and Protection (CNCP).
Violation of Section 74 may attract imprisonment of up to six months, or a fine of up to ₹2 lakh, or both, the notice states.
The DCPO has advised media organisations, journalists, social media influencers, page administrators, messaging-group administrators and members of the public not to publish, share or forward any photograph, video, name, locality, school details, parentage or FIR-related particulars that could identify a minor victim or child covered under the Juvenile Justice framework.
The advisory further directs that any person, administrator or media outlet that has already posted, shared or forwarded such identifying material must immediately delete and remove the content from all channels, pages and cloud storage upon receipt of the notice.
The District Child Protection Officer has called for strict compliance with the statutory provisions, emphasising that protection of the identity and dignity of children must take precedence over the circulation of sensitive information.
Copies of the advisory have been forwarded to the Deputy Commissioner/District Magistrate Kishtwar, SSP Kishtwar, Mission Vatsalya J&K, Child Welfare Committee Kishtwar, Juvenile Justice Board Kishtwar and District Information Officer Kishtwar for information and necessary action/wide circulation. (JKNS)
