NCJ Number
87374
Journal
Indian Journal of Criminology Volume: 10 Issue: 2 Dated: (July 1982) Pages: 132-139
Date Published
1982
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Although India's Criminal Tribes Laws (Repeal) Act of 1952 eliminated the stigmatizing of certain tribes as criminal and authorized rehabilitative services for communities formally designated as criminal, the identification of habitual offenders and the administration of services for them is problematic.
Abstract
Because of various complex socioeconomic forces certain tribes in India developed criminogenic cultures that preyed on other members of Indian society. A series of acts was passed designed to identify and control such tribes through such measures as registration, colonization, and the separation of children from their families. After independence, a committee reviewed this legislation and determined that it was more punitive than rehabilitative, and so the 1952 law was passed to repeal previous legislation and denotify tribes as being criminal. Further, rehabilitation measures were specified for the denotified communities designed to upgrade education, cultural values, and vocation skills. Individual habitual offenders are dealt with under the Habitual Offenders Act. The police are responsible for identifying and locating habitual offenders, but they do not have a detailed followup record of each offender. After locating an habitual offender, the police must approach the district magistrate to register and restrict the offender under the act. The habitual offender is referred to the Social Welfare Department for treatment if corrections and the police have failed in their efforts. The successive, uncoordinated involvement of various agencies with the habitual offender is ineffective. The implementation of the Habitual Offenders Act should be entirely under one department that will develop a comprehensive program for identifying and treating habitual offenders. A bibliography of 24 listings is provided.