Six weeks: that is the time the State has been given to appoint POCSO Special Prosecutors who will work on POCSO cases alone, after the Kerala High Court struck down a Government Order that let them take up other matters as well.
Ernakulam: Setting aside a Government Order that allowed Special Public Prosecutors appointed for POCSO cases to also conduct non-POCSO cases under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, the Kerala High Court has directed the State to appoint prosecutors exclusively for POCSO cases within six weeks [District Court Bar Association and Another v. State of Kerala and Others].
The public interest litigation, brought by the District Court Bar Association and its Secretary, was disposed of on 14 October 2026 by a Division Bench of Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V.M.
What the State must now do
Appointments of Special Public Prosecutors exclusively for POCSO cases are to be made within six weeks. The State was also asked to consider setting up the remaining 13 permanent, exclusive POCSO Special Courts, one in each district except Ernakulam, in line with the Supreme Court’s directions, and to communicate its decision to the High Court Administration within four weeks of receiving the judgment.
The order under challenge
Under the Government Order, Special Public Prosecutors appointed for POCSO cases could also conduct non-POCSO matters instituted under the Juvenile Justice Act. The Director General of Prosecution defended this at the hearing, relying on the definition of a Children’s Court in the Juvenile Justice Act, while the petitioners argued that it ran against the directions of the Supreme Court.
Earlier in the case, the High Court had directed the State to assess its need for additional POCSO courts and had examined the facilities available in existing ones. Its inspection of district courts found that most POCSO courts did not conform to the guidelines under the Act, a finding that led to the directions on infrastructure in this judgment.
Where the Supreme Court’s 2020 order comes in
The Bench held the Government Order to be in conflict with the Supreme Court’s order of 8 January 2020 in the suo motu proceedings on the rise in child rape cases. It extracted the passages of that order, which stress that the Special Public Prosecutor under the Act should not deal with other cases:
“Section 32 of the POCSO Act clearly lays down that there shall be Special Public Prosecutors for the POCSO cases.”
The Supreme Court had also directed the States to appoint exclusive Public Prosecutors in all courts set up exclusively for POCSO cases, and had observed that the job of a POCSO prosecutor is onerous and must be carried out with great care and sensitivity.
The High Court’s conclusion
“In view of the aforesaid, the Government Order permitting Special Public Prosecutors appointed for POCSO cases to conduct non-POCSO cases cannot be sustained.”
The state of the courtrooms
On the affidavit of the Registrar (District Judiciary), which it took on record, the Court directed that all POCSO courts must conform to the provisions of the POCSO Act and that the shortcomings identified in the affidavit be rectified at the earliest. The State must provide the financial and other assistance needed for the High Court Administration and the Registrar to carry out the required modifications. The writ petition was disposed of on those terms.
What the ruling changes
The judgment gives effect to the Supreme Court’s 2020 position that prosecutors in child sexual offence cases must be dedicated to them, so that they can be trained to deal with child victims and child witnesses without the pull of an unrelated docket. The route by which Juvenile Justice Act work could be assigned to the same officers is now closed.
With time-bound directions on appointments and on the remaining 13 special courts, the State is also on a deadline, and how quickly the dedicated prosecution structure is put in place across districts will show in the coming weeks.
Case Title: District Court Bar Association and Another v. State of Kerala and Others [WP(PIL) No. 75 of 2026]
Bench: Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V.M., Kerala High Court
Date of Judgment: October 14, 2026
Appearances: Advocates V.M. Krishnakumar, P.R. Reena and Pooja Sunil for the petitioners; Director General of Prosecution Asaf Ali and Advocate Harikumar G for the respondents
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