What changed
2026-07-26 07:58 UTC → 2026-07-26 17:18 UTC ·
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The multi‑state anti‑child‑labour and sexual‑assault drive that began with the Gujarat‑Rajasthan raid in May 2026 has broadened to address other severe child offenses. On 10 July, Odisha police reported two assaults – a rescued minor girl in Keonjhar and Following a critically injured four‑year‑old series of high‑profile interventions in Nabarangpur – both prosecuted July 2026, police across several Indian states have intensified actions under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Sanhita, the POCSO Act and the proposed Shakti Act. A On 25 July, Uttar Pradesh court sentenced a 40‑year‑old to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment for abusing a seven‑year‑old, while police in Rahimabad officers arrested a 34‑year‑old for kidnapping an e‑rickshaw driver and assaulting a four‑year‑old Dalit girl, also under POCSO. Protests followed on 13 July in south Mumbai his accomplice after a security guard’s alleged assault of an eight‑year‑old and in Odisha’s Ganjam district over 13‑year‑old girl escaped an Ayush doctor’s alleged attempted rape of a 14‑year‑old, with demonstrators demanding tougher penalties and the adoption of alerted police; a constable was wounded during the Shakti Act. night operation. The scope of enforcement widened on 17 July when Gurugram same day, Nagpur police rescued in Maharashtra lodged a five‑year‑old boy kidnapped by two relatives, seized the ransom‑related auto‑rickshaw, and arrested the suspects. Authorities emphasized that POCSO case for the same investigative vigor applied to kidnapping cases, reflecting an expanding commitment to protect children across India. On 19 July, Delhi’s Central District Unit launched repeated rape of a joint operation under 12‑year‑old girl, taking into custody a zero‑tolerance policy against child sexual‑exploitation material. Ten individuals were arrested and charged under the POCSO Act 24‑year‑old suspect and a 14‑year‑old juvenile. These arrests underscore the Information Technology Act, with phones and other devices seized for forensic analysis. Police indicated further growing use of technical investigations were underway evidence and that additional arrests could follow as digital footprints are examined. A week later, rapid response teams. The crackdown continued on 26 July, Delhi Police’s July when Delhi’s Anti‑Human Trafficking Unit rescued two minor girls abducted in Bihar. Using technical surveillance, Bihar – a 13‑year‑old from Paharganj traced via mobile‑handset movements and a 15‑year‑old from Anand Parbat located after analysis of 65 CCTV feeds and verification of more than over 140 shelters, officers tracked a 13‑year‑old from Paharganj shelters. The operation brought the unit’s year‑to‑date total of rescued missing children to Supaul district 46. Earlier in the month, Odisha, Gujarat‑Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and a 15‑year‑old Delhi police had seized suspects, rescued victims, and launched digital‑forensics raids on child‑sex‑exploitation material. The sequence of investigations, arrests, rescues and public protests shows an expanding, coordinated effort to Benipatti, Madhubani district, apprehending the kidnappers. protect minors and enforce harsher penalties nationwide.