Swarna Shukla –
Published On: October 23, 2021 at 11:00 IST
The Supreme Court said that the claim of being a Juvenile can be made at any stage. Even after being convicted in a case, the accused can claim to be a Juvenile.
The Bench of Justice JK Malhotra and Indira Banerjee was hearing a Writ Petition preferred by 23 Petitioners undergoing imprisonment in Agra Central Jail for over 6 years and 20 years.
The Court observed that the delay in raising claims of juvenility could not be a ground for rejection of the Petition and asked the Uttar Pradesh Government to get the Petitioner’s claim of being Juvenile to be verified by the respective Session Court within a month and if anyone is a Juvenile, he should be released.
Advocate Rishi Malhotra, appearing for the Petitioners argued that the Petitioners are in Agra Central Jail, having already gone through incarnation for 12-15 years.
Appearing for the State of Uttar Pradesh, Additional Solicitor General Garima Prasad contended that in the present matter, the issue of juvenility of the Petitioners had not been given at all.
Justice Indira Banerjee remarked, “If a person is found to be juvenile, the person can’t be kept in custody for more than 3 years irrespective of the nature of the offence. The claim of juvenility has to be looked into.”
Advocate Rishi Malhotra relied on the Supreme Court’s Observation in Abuzar Hussain v State of West Bengal 2012.
Advocate Malhotra submitted that he was not seeking the issuance of directions only to the Juvenile Justice Board but also prayed for the issuance of directions for the determination of the Petitioner’s juvenility.
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