FEMALE JUVENILE DELINQUENCY

Female delinquency has long been overshadowed by male delinquency in terms of incidence, magnitude, seriousness, research, and recognition. As a result, we relatively know little about female delinquency. Owing to the pluralistic cultural profile of India, drawing a uniform definition of delinquency among women becomes a very difficult task. There is a disparity between what the society considers as delinquent and the meaning attached to delinquency by the girl child herself.
Girl child in India comes in contact with the juvenile justice system mainly because of abusive situations at home. These situations force them to run away, as a result of which the society labels them as a delinquent child. An Indian delinquent girl is often abused and neglected. This study offers a multifaceted exploration of female delinquency: Who are they? Where do they come from? What is the socio-economic profile of female juvenile delinquents? What are the kinds of delinquent acts they commit? What are the elements/causal factors that prompt and perpetrate girls’ delinquency?
Since most of the definitions of juvenile delinquency are based on Western theories, this book has attempted to throw light on the meaning of delinquency in the Indian context. It also focuses on the meaning of delinquency as perceived by the delinquent girl children themselves and analyses the factors and conditions responsible for abuse and victimization of girl child, leading to their induction into criminogenic culture. The book will throw new and incisive light on this social problem which affects the future of the girl child and in turn the society in more than one ways. Hopefully, this book, besides contributing to knowledge related to this subject, will have implications for policy and relevance for policymakers.