Legal World

Section 21 POCSO Act — Punishment for failure to report or rec ord a case

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 · Official PDF page 12

Open in NyayaOfficial PDF, page 12

21. Punishment for failure to report or rec ord a case. —(1) Any person, who fails to report the commission of an offence under sub-section (1) of section 19 or section 20 or who fails to record such offence under sub -section ( 2) of section 19 shall be punished with imprisonment of either description which may extend to six months or with fine or with both.

(2) Any person, being in-charge of any company or an institution (by whatever name called) who fails to report the commission of an offence under sub -section (1) of section 19 in respect of a subordinate under his control, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year and with fine.

(3) The provisions of sub-section (1) shall not apply to a child under this Act.

Text extracted from the official PDF (India Code source edition; cover states: 1st July, 2026). Line breaks and footnote marks may differ; the PDF is the authority.

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