SANTOSH KUMAR Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The most ridiculous situation is where the Judicial Officers have either forgotten or abdicated their judicial functions. The petitioner was made an accused in Barbigha Police Station Case No 158 of 2004 (GR No 509 of 2004) instituted under Sections 302, 307/34 of Indian Penal Code and Section 27 of Arms Act. When petitioner was apprehended, he pleaded juvenility. Ultimately, the Juvenile Justice Board found that his date of birth was 18.03.1988 and, as such, on the date of occurrence, he would be slightly above 16 years of age. Petitioner then filed an application to be released on bail. The Juvenile Justice Board, taking into account the gravity of offence alleged, refused to release him and authorized his detention in Patna High Court CR. REV. No.274 of 2015 dt.25 -05 -2015 civil prison. Criminal Appeal was preferred against the said order which has been dismissed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Sheikhpura by his order dated 28.02.2015. Hence, this criminal revision application.

(2.) This Court is simply amazed. The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Act, 2006 (for brevity, the Act) clearly provides, inter alia, that no juvenile can be tried or punished except in the manner as contained in the said Act. Juvenile is a person below 18 years. The Act further provides that the question of juvenility is with reference to the date of occurrence and not the age when the person is brought before or is to be tried. It further provides that no juvenile means thereby no person, who was juvenile at the time of occurrence, can at all be sentenced or kept in prison. It is further provided that a person, who ceases to be a juvenile, cannot be placed in Care Home.

(3.) To my little understanding, the combined reading of these statutory mandatory provisions are that detention in Care Home can only be upto the age of 18 years and if the person was juvenile when he was alleged to have committed an offence, he can never be permitted to be kept in detention in a prison whatever may be the provision of Section 12 of the Act. The true import of Section 12 of the Act is that if the release would expose the juvenile to the company Patna High Court CR. REV. No.274 of 2015 dt.25 -05 -2015 of criminals, he may not be released but that does not mean that his detention can be authorized in a jail. Being more than 18 years of age, he may not be authorized to be detained in the Care Home. The net result is that upon attaining majority, a juvenile, in conflict with law, has to be released with care of the parents.