19 years on, Supreme Court frees man jailed as minor | India News
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NEW DELHI: After spending almost 19 years in jail, that too after being declared a juvenile nine years ago, the Supreme Court Friday granted a prison inmate relief and ordered his release forthwith on bail saying he could not be kept in detention any further.
Taking note of the Juvenile Justice Board order declaring him juvenile way back in 2014, a bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and V Ramasubramanian said a juvenile cannot be detained in custody beyond three years as per the provisions of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, which was in force at the material time when the incident took place, and granted him bail.
As counsel appearing for Uttar Pradesh government sought time to look into the case, the bench said, “Since there is an order of the Juvenile Justice Board passed way back in 2014 declaring the petitioner a juvenile, there can be no question of any further detention of the petitioner in custody. The petitioner shall immediately be granted interim bail on a personal bond.”
The life convict had to pass through a very difficult phase with 19 years in jail. He had to spend seven years in the shadow of death as he was awarded the death sentence in 2005 but it was commuted to life imprisonment in 2012 by the President. He was convicted by a trial court and awarded death sentence in the 2003 murder case. The lower court order was upheld by Allahabad HC and finally the Supreme Court. Being illiterate and not aware about law, he did not raise the defence of juvenility and neither did his lawyer at any stage of court proceedings.
His juvenility came to light when the Allahabad HC directed Juvenile Justice Boards to examine prisoners in jails in UP, while hearing a PIL.
Taking note of the Juvenile Justice Board order declaring him juvenile way back in 2014, a bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and V Ramasubramanian said a juvenile cannot be detained in custody beyond three years as per the provisions of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, which was in force at the material time when the incident took place, and granted him bail.
As counsel appearing for Uttar Pradesh government sought time to look into the case, the bench said, “Since there is an order of the Juvenile Justice Board passed way back in 2014 declaring the petitioner a juvenile, there can be no question of any further detention of the petitioner in custody. The petitioner shall immediately be granted interim bail on a personal bond.”
The life convict had to pass through a very difficult phase with 19 years in jail. He had to spend seven years in the shadow of death as he was awarded the death sentence in 2005 but it was commuted to life imprisonment in 2012 by the President. He was convicted by a trial court and awarded death sentence in the 2003 murder case. The lower court order was upheld by Allahabad HC and finally the Supreme Court. Being illiterate and not aware about law, he did not raise the defence of juvenility and neither did his lawyer at any stage of court proceedings.
His juvenility came to light when the Allahabad HC directed Juvenile Justice Boards to examine prisoners in jails in UP, while hearing a PIL.
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