Chennai: Law minister R Nirmalkumar announced in the assembly on Friday that the state govt would establish 17 new special courts for the exclusive trial of Pocso cases at a cost of ₹25 crore.The decision has been taken considering the huge backlog of cases, Nirmalkumar said. While Madurai would have two new courts, the rest would be set up in Chengalpet, Coimbatore, Cuddalore, Dharmapuri, Dindigul, Erode, Kallakurichi, Kanyakumari, Krishnagiri, Salem, Tiruvallur and Tirunelveli districts. Three more courts would be set up in Ariyalur, Perambalur and Pudukkottai at a cost of ₹5.41 crore.The move followed a recent submission by the state police before Madras high court that 18,518 Pocso cases were pending trial, including 10,202 that have been pending for more than a year. Police had also noted that 20 districts lacked exclusive Pocso courts.Nirmalkumar then said three special courts would be established in Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur and Vellore while one in Chennai would be set up for exclusive trial of cases under the NDPS Act. An SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act Special Court would be set up in Erode at ₹1.93 crore, he said.An AI-powered legal repository and a state advisory board on crimes against women, children and drug abuse would also be set up, he said.
