Section 28 POCSO Act 2012: Designation of Special Courts
Section 28 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 is the opening provision of Chapter VII on Special Courts. It requires designation of a Court of Session in each district for speedy trial of POCSO offences and defines important parts of the Special Court's jurisdiction.
Text of Section 28 of the POCSO Act
28. Designation of Special Courts.
(1) For the purposes of providing a speedy trial, the State Government shall in consultation with the Chief Justice of the High Court, by notification in the Official Gazette, designate for each district, a Court of Session to be a Special Court to try the offences under the Act:
Provided that if a Court of Session is notified as a children's court under the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005 (4 of 2006) or a Special Court designated for similar purposes under any other law for the time being in force, then, such court shall be deemed to be a Special Court under this section.
(2) While trying an offence under this Act, a Special Court shall also try an offence other than the offence referred to in sub-section (1), with which the accused may, under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), be charged at the same trial.
(3) The Special Court constituted under this Act, notwithstanding anything in the Information Technology Act, 2000 (21 of 2000), shall have jurisdiction to try offences under section 67B of that Act in so far as it relates to publication or transmission of sexually explicit material depicting children in any act, or conduct or manner or facilitates abuse of children online.
Purpose of a POCSO Special Court
The central object of Section 28(1) is speedy trial. The State Government, after consultation with the Chief Justice of the relevant High Court, must designate a Court of Session for each district by notification in the Official Gazette. A qualifying Children's Court or another Special Court designated for similar purposes may be treated as the POCSO Special Court under the proviso.
Special Court is a Court of Session
The designated court is a Court of Session exercising the special statutory jurisdiction conferred by the POCSO Act. Section 33(9) further provides that, subject to the Act, the Special Court has all the powers of a Court of Session for trial of POCSO offences.
Jurisdiction Over Connected Offences
Section 28(2) enables the Special Court, while trying a POCSO offence, also to try another offence with which the accused may lawfully be charged at the same trial. This avoids unnecessary fragmentation of a criminal case where POCSO charges and connected offences arise from the same transaction or are otherwise capable of joint trial under criminal procedure.
Current criminal procedure: Section 28(2) retains an express reference to the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 came into force on 1 July 2024 and repealed the CrPC subject to the repeal and savings provision in Section 531 BNSS. For current proceedings, the procedural question should therefore be considered with the applicable BNSS provisions and the statutory savings for pending matters.
Jurisdiction Under Section 67B of the Information Technology Act
Section 28(3) gives the POCSO Special Court jurisdiction, notwithstanding the Information Technology Act, 2000, to try offences under Section 67B of the IT Act to the extent specified in Section 28(3).
Section 67B of the Information Technology Act deals with specified electronic material and conduct involving children, including publishing, transmitting, creating, collecting, seeking, browsing, downloading, advertising, promoting, exchanging or distributing material depicting children in sexually explicit acts or conduct, and other conduct covered by that provision. The precise charge depends on the statutory ingredients and facts of the case.
How Section 28 Works With Other POCSO Provisions
| Provision | Function |
|---|---|
| Section 28 | Designation and jurisdiction of POCSO Special Courts. |
| Section 32 | Appointment and eligibility of Special Public Prosecutors. |
| Section 33 | Procedure, powers and child-friendly duties of the Special Court. |
| Section 35 | Statutory periods concerning recording of the child's evidence and completion of trial. |
| Section 36 | Measures to prevent the child from seeing the accused while testifying. |
| Section 37 | Trial to be conducted in camera in accordance with the provision. |
Key Points of Section 28 POCSO Act
- The object of designation is speedy trial of offences under the POCSO Act.
- A Court of Session is designated as the Special Court for each district through the statutory consultation and notification process.
- An existing qualifying Children's Court or similarly designated Special Court may be deemed to be the POCSO Special Court.
- The Special Court can try connected offences capable of being charged at the same trial.
- The Special Court also has the specific jurisdiction conferred by Section 28(3) in relation to Section 67B of the Information Technology Act, 2000.
- POCSO Special Court procedure must be read with the other special safeguards and powers contained in the Act.
Official Legal Resources
Authoritative statutory material is available from the India Code POCSO Act, 2012, the India Code portal, the Supreme Court of India and eCourts Services.
Updated: 3 October 2026.