Building bridges, not bars: The need for Community Justice Centers in India

Building bridges, not bars: The need for Community Justice Centers in India --R Karunanidhi is an Advocate practicing before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court. https://www.barandbench.com/columns/the-need-of-community-justice-centers-in-india It is necessary for state governments as well as courts of law to reform and rehabilitate first-time offenders.

Published on: 13 Dec 2024, 7:59 pm A recent observation by the Madras High Court has brought to light the urgent need for reformative measures in handling juvenile cases in India. While granting bail to a 19-year-old youth, the Court lamented the lack of sensitivity shown in handling juveniles and stressed the importance of introducing a reformation project across the State to prevent them from becoming notorious criminals. This issue brings into focus the potential of Community Justice Centers as transformative institutions in India’s judicial system. My recent visit to the Midtown Community Justice Center in New York City offered me valuable insights into an innovative approach to justice that could inspire similar efforts in India. The Midtown Community Justice Center gives two messages to the society. There are consequences to crime and accused must pay back to the community by painting walls, cleaning streets or making the parks more habitable. The second message is that the court is available to help reform accused. The Midtown Community Justice Center The Midtown Community Justice Center operates with a distinct philosophy, focusing on rehabilitation and reformation rather than mere punitive measures. Even though our system does have similar provisions with respect to juvenile offenders, it does not support dismissal of prosecution completely in order to give a chance for the offenders to reform themselves when the offences are minor in nature. Besides employment-related issues, it is not uncommon that our citizens are frequently facing issues to get their passports just because some criminal cases even for minor offences are registered and pending against them. During one of the program visits, I saw an accused who was charged for a minor offence of house trespass. I came to know that it was the last day of his training, after which a judge handed him a certificate for the completion of the 6 months’ training. The judge advised him that he should concentrate on his studies and work on his future goals. After congratulating him for his successful completion of 6 months’ training, the judge dismissed the case filed by the State. The dismissal of the case means that the accused will not barred from entering into public employment and uniform service in the USA. The Midtown Community Justice Center is a part of the New York City Criminal Court. It was established in 1993 as part of a collaboration between the New York State Unified Court System and the Center for Court Innovation. The entire process is assisted by a non-governmental organisation that has partnership with the Court. The Court relies on partnerships with local residents, businesses and social service agencies to organise community restitution projects including drug treatment, mental health counseling and job training. Unlike most conventional courts, the Midtown Court combines punishment and help, requiring low-level offenders to pay back the neighborhood through community service while mandating them to receive training to address the problems that often underlie criminal behaviour. The Center encourages restoration by allowing offenders to contribute positively to society, hone their skills and inculcate a sense of responsibility. After filing a case report, the District Attorney’s office will decide whether the particular case can be referred to the Center depending on whether the offence is only misdemeanor like drug usage, illegal vending, prostitution, house trespass, etc. The District Attorney Office will look into the nature of the offences and the antecedents of the accused. The District Attorney may send the case to the Community Justice Court after getting consent from the accused. The important aspect of the Community Justice Court is that there will not be any punishment or fine to the accused in such cases. Instead, the accused will be sent to a 6-month community service program that includes work like cleaning roads, packing kitchen-made food items, folding clothes, painting and other some community-based work. Several challenges existed thirty years ago when this Court was started in New York City. The public as well as police officials opposed this innovative project out of fear for public safety standards. However, after seeing the positive outcome, they have accepted community service as a form of punishment and now it is considered a successful alternative to incarceration. During the 1990s, there were more than 20,000 persons detained in New York City jails. Since the establishment of the Center, the number of jail inmates has drastically come down and presently only 6,000 prisoners are under custody. Indian laws on reformation of offenders The Probation of Offenders Act, 1958 was enacted to provide for the release of offenders of certain categories on probation. Section 19 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act states that a juvenile who has committed an offence shall not suffer disqualification on account of conviction. Further, the Juvenile Justice Board shall make an order directing that the relevant records of such conviction shall be removed after the expiry of the period of appeal or a reasonable period as prescribed under the rules. However, in many cases, the stigma attached to juveniles in our society prevent them from entering into public employment. The philosophy behind the Indian penal system, designed to suppress and control the crimes committed by colonial subjects, has not changed, even with the introduction of the new criminal laws. The introduction of community service as a form of alternative punishment in the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) is good for restorative justice, but there is no system to implement the same in India. Well-defined guidelines and collaboration of public and civil society organisations are necessary to implement the same. The Central and state governments may take an example of the Midtown Community Justice Center as a pilot project for implementing community service. Need for Community Justice Centers in India In one case, the Madras High Court imposed a bail condition on an accused that he must undergo social service at Gandhi Museum, Madurai. A district judge imposed a condition while granting anticipatory bail that the accused must uproot harmful trees in an area. These are some of the innovative steps taken by the judiciary, but there is a need for systematic legislation combined with rules. It is necessary for state governments as well as courts of law to reform and rehabilitate first-time offenders. There are many circumstances such as poverty and social status that are the causes for the increase of offences in the society. As Justice VR Krishna Iyer rightly said, “The law barks at all but bites only the poor, the powerless, the illiterate, disadvantaged populations and the ignorant.” Welfare legislation and proactive judgments are needed instead of punitive action against first-time offenders, especially for minor offences. Such steps can also reduce recidivism by addressing the underlying causes of criminal behaviour and promoting social reintegration. Given that Indian prisons have an overcrowding issue, Community Justice Centers are required in India. These Centres can facilitate meaningful contributions to society from accused in minor offences. They provide opportunities to such persons to change their futures. Generally, the Indian criminal justice system imposes fines or punishment on accused instead of giving them an opportunity to be reformed. Punishing minor offenders sometimes results in accused becoming major criminals. Everyone knows that when a first-time offender enters jail, he has the propensity to become a hardened criminal due to his association with habitual offenders detained in the same prison. No one is born as criminal; it is circumstances that make a person an offender. Indian society certainly needs institutions similar to the Midtown Community Justice Center to reform low-level and minor offenders.