SC to hear Swamy's plea to reinterpret term juvenile on Jul 31

New Delhi, July 23: The Supreme Court today agreed to hear on July 31 the plea of Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy for a fresh interpretation of the term 'juvenile' which he raised in the wake of the December 16 gangrape incident here.

Swamy told the apex court that his petition asking to consider the "mental and intellectual maturity" instead of age limit of 18 years for such offenders while fixing their culpability would become infructuous if the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) goes ahead with pronouncement of verdict already scheduled for July 25.

Taking note of his submission, a bench comprising Chief Justice P Sathasivam and Justice Ranjan Gogoi asked him to inform the JJB about his pending petition in the apex court.

"Inform the Board that we are seized of the matter," the bench said.

The JJB has fixed July 25 for its verdict involving the juvenile, who was one of the six accused in the gangrape of the 23-year-old paramedic student.

In his petition, Swamy has said the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act (JJA) provides for a "straitjacket" interpretation of the term 'juvenile' that a person below the age of 18 years is a minor and it was in violation of the United Nations Convention for the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and Beijing Rules on the issue.

PTI