Mumbai, June 30 -- Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced on Tuesday that the state government will invoke the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against criminal syndicates that exploit children for illegal activities.
The announcement was made in the Legislative Assembly during a discussion on the alarming surge of juvenile delinquency in Jalna district, where statistics revealed that minors were involved in 8 out of 17 murder cases reported over the past four months.
Chief Minister Fadnavis declared that if investigations confirm that criminal gangs are using minors-either through coercion, financial inducement, or psychological manipulation-to carry out crimes like drug peddling, illicit liquor distributi...