Only 50 of Capital’s 194 police stations have paralegal volunteers; 1 POCSO victim provided aid in 2025: RTI

NEW DELHI: Only 50 of Delhi’s 194 police stations currently have paralegal volunteers and only one victim of a POCSO case availed their assistance in 2025, despite a Supreme Court mandate on it, an RTI query has revealed. Paralegal volunteers (PLVs) work in three shifts of eight hours each at the 50 police stations, which comes around to a fourth of all stations in the national capital, data provided by the Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA) showed.

However, their utilisation in Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) cases appears minimal. According to replies received from district legal services authorities, only one POCSO case in 2025 in southwest district involved the assignment of a PLV to assist the victim.

The replies to the RTI query also indicate that the volunteers are not specifically deployed for POCSO cases and are primarily engaged under the ‘Missing Children’ project.

Data shows that in the northeast district, four of the 10 police stations — Gokalpuri, Khajuri Khas, New Usmanpur and Karawal Nagar — have PLVs deployed. In New Delhi district, only two police stations, Sagarpur and Vasant Kunj South, have such volunteers.

In south district, five of the 14 police stations — Sangam Vihar, Fatehpur Beri, Neb Sarai, Ambedkar Nagar and Mehrauli — have PLV deployment. In Shahdara district, Seemapuri, Nand Nagri, Harsh Vihar and Jafrabad police stations have PLV services. North district, which has 15 police stations, has PLVs deployed in Alipur, Jahangirpuri, Bawana, Bhalaswa Dairy, Samaypur Badli, Narela, Shahbad Dairy and Swaroop Nagar police stations. Several Delhi police stations lack PLVs for POCSO cases. The Supreme Court directed states to verify deployment, address gaps and ensure trained support.