The Child Trafficking Crisis in India: Between Constitutional Rights and Ground Reality

Source: The Hindu

Introduction 

Child trafficking remains a deeply disturbing reality in India despite constitutional protections and legislative frameworks. The Supreme Court in its recent decision in K. P. Kiran Kumar v. State (2025) has given strict guidelines to prevent such offences, holding that trafficking grossly violates children's fundamental right to life as guaranteed by the Constitution. 

• According to the National Crime Records Bureau, in 2022, about 3,098 children below 18 years were rescued. Between April 2024 and March 2025, over 53,000 children were rescued from child labour, trafficking and kidnapping across India. However, the conviction rate for such offences between 2018 and 2022 was only 4.8%, highlighting the significant gap between rescue operations and successful prosecutions. 

What are the Supreme Court Guidelines in K. P. Kiran Kumar v. State (2025) Case? 

• The Supreme Court in its recent decision in K. P. Kiran Kumar versus State has given strict guidelines to prevent such offences and held that trafficking grossly violates children's fundamental right to life as guaranteed by the Constitution. 
• The guidelines point out that the socio-economic vulnerabilities of the victims must be considered, especially those from marginalised communities. 
• The Constitution extensively provides for the protection of children. Articles 23 and 24 give protection from human trafficking, begging, forced labour and employment in hazardous industries. 
• The guidelines point out that the socio-economic vulnerabilities of the victims must be considered, especially those from marginalised communities. 

What is Child Trafficking? 

International Definition: The Palermo Protocol 

• Internationally, the Palermo Protocol (UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children), 2000 defines child trafficking as "the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring, or receipt of a child for the purpose of exploitation." 
• The word 'exploitation' is wide enough in its scope and includes physical and sexual exploitation as well. It also includes any form of slavery, servitude, or forced removal of organs. 

Indian Legal Framework: Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023: 

• Presently, Section 143 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023 provides that "whoever, for the purpose of exploitation, recruits, transports, harbours, transfers, or receives, a person or persons by, using threats; or using force, or any other form of coercion; or by abduction; or by practising fraud, or deception; or by abuse of power; or by inducement, including the giving or receiving of payments or benefits, in order to achieve the consent of any person having control over the person recruited, transported, harboured, transferred or received, commits the offence of trafficking." 

What are the Rights of Children? 

About: 

• The Constitution extensively provides for the protection of children. Articles 23 and 24 give protection from human trafficking, begging, forced labour and employment in hazardous industries. 
• Apart from these provisions, the state is also obliged to ensure that children are not abused, and that they are given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity. They are protected against exploitation and moral and material abandonment under Clauses (e) and (f) of Article 39 respectively. 
• The BNS under Sections 98 and 99 specifically addresses the "selling and buying" of minors. On the other hand, prevention of trafficking for sexual exploitation is provided in the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956. 

Legislative Protection Framework: 

• The care, protection and rehabilitation for victims of child trafficking is provided under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. 
• The Criminal Law Amendment Act, 2013 also intends to check such activities by providing a more comprehensive definition of trafficking by including sexual exploitation, slavery, servitude, forced labour, and organ removal. It will cover trafficking irrespective of consent. 
• The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012 assumes greater significance in this regard. Apart from defining offences covering sexual assault, harassment and child pornography, the Act includes stringent punishments which inter alia include life imprisonment and even death penalty in extreme cases. One of the most important aspects of the Act is that it is gender-neutral. In order to provide rapid trials, about 400 fast track courts set up exclusively for implementing the POCSO Act are in operation across India. These courts have set a target to dispose of around 165 cases per year per court. 

Judicial Approach: 

• In Vishal Jeet v. Union of India (1990), it was held that trafficking and child prostitution are serious socio-economic problems and hence a preventive and humanistic approach is essential to deal with them. 
• In M. C. Mehta v. State of Tamil Nadu (1996), the Court issued guidelines with a view to prohibiting employment of children in hazardous industries. 
• In the Bachpan Bachao Andolan v. Union of India (2011) case, the top court issued directions that the socio-economic vulnerabilities of the victims must be considered, especially those from marginalised communities. 

Conclusion 

The Supreme Court's guidelines in K. P. Kiran Kumar v. State represent a significant step forward in India's fight against child trafficking, but the disturbingly low conviction rate of 4.8% reveals that legislative and judicial frameworks alone cannot solve this crisis. While the Constitution guarantees fundamental protections under Articles 23 and 24, and specialized legislation like the POCSO Act and Juvenile Justice Act provide comprehensive safeguards, the gap between law and implementation remains vast.

Moving forward, India must adopt a three-pronged approach: first, strengthening prevention through social welfare programs that protect vulnerable communities; second, ensuring effective prosecution by improving investigation quality, witness protection, and judicial capacity in fast track courts; and third, providing comprehensive rehabilitation that gives rescued children genuine opportunities for recovery and reintegration. Only when constitutional rights translate into lived reality for every child—particularly those from marginalised communities—will India truly fulfill its obligation to protect its most vulnerable citizens from exploitation.