Guwahati, Oct 14: The Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) in Assam’s Hailakandi district ordered that a 17-year-old accused in the alleged rape and murder of a 16-year-old girl be tried as an adult.
Hailakandi police, in a statement on Tuesday, said the principal magistrate of JJB passed the order after considering the heinous nature of the alleged crime, a psychological assessment report, a preliminary assessment report from Silchar Medical College and Hospital (SMCH), and an offence report submitted by the investigating officer.
“Considering the heinous nature of the crime, the psychological assessment report and the preliminary assessment report of the Silchar Medical College & Hospital and also the Offence Report submitted by the I/O of the case, the Principal Magistrate, Juvenile Justice Board, Hailakandi has passed an order the trial of the Child-in-Conflict with Law (CCL) will be conducted as an adult,” police said.
The order was passed following an assessment of his psychological condition, medical reports and the findings of the police investigation.
The JJB order comes more than two months after the girl was found dead in her home on the night of August 1 in the Aloichora area under Katlicherra police station. According to senior superintendent of police (SSP) Amitab Sinha, the boy was 17 years and five months old when it happened. He was detained by police in the first week of August, police said.
A case was registered at Katlicherra police station under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including section 65(1) (rape of a girl under the age of 16) and section 103(1) (murder), along with section 6 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012.
The incident triggered widespread protests across Assam’s Barak Valley, with residents blocking National Highway-6 and demanding capital punishment for those involved.
Police said that they initially detained five persons following the incident. During the early investigation, officers said one of the accused was a minor and that investigators sought permission to have him tried as an adult.
Sinha told HT in August that the police department approached the court for an adult trial.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed to investigate the matter. The SSP said that a detailed chargesheet against five accused, including one juvenile, was submitted before the court in September after examining forensic and medico-legal evidence, witness statements, digital records and materials seized from the crime scene.
According to the lawyers, under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, a child aged between 16 and 18 accused of a heinous offence may undergo a preliminary assessment to determine whether an adult trial is necessary. The Children’s Court determines whether the case should proceed as an adult trial.
The latest decision was welcomed by the girl’s family and some legal practitioners, while others have raised concerns about its implications for juvenile justice and child rights.
“If we look at the brutality of the incident, as reported in newspapers and described in police statements, it was extreme. Such an act is difficult even to imagine being committed by a child. We welcome the court’s decision,” senior advocate Gautam Ghose said.
Ghose said that board has set an example by considering the seriousness of the allegations and the circumstances surrounding the incident rather than treating the accused’s age as the only relevant factor.
However, human rights activist and Gauhati high court lawyer Taniya Laskar said, “The accused can undergo trial under the Juvenile Justice Act, and the court can impose the most rigorous punishment available under that framework. But putting him on trial as an adult is, in my view, a violation of human rights, and the decision can be challenged before a higher court.”
She referred to India’s obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which recognises special protections for persons below 18 years of age.
She acknowledged the seriousness of the allegations but said judicial decisions must be based on statutory safeguards, evidence and established legal principles rather than the public reaction to an incident.
“Sometimes cases involving rape or other serious crimes receive extensive media attention, and there is a danger that public sentiment may influence how the case is viewed. But when the evidence is examined by higher courts, the outcome can be different,” she said.
Referring to a case from Nagaon, Laskar said a death sentence awarded by a district court in 2018 was set aside by the Gauhati high court this year, resulting in the acquittal of the accused.
“The law must follow the existing rules and should not be influenced by the prevailing situation, media trials or any other external factor. An accused remains an accused unless proven guilty. Members of the public may form opinions based on what they see or hear, but the judiciary must stand above such pressures,” she added.
Supreme Court advocate Milan Laskar, however, said the Hailakandi order should not be viewed as an unprecedented departure from Indian law.
“This is not a standalone example. There have been several cases across the country in which accused persons below 18 were considered for trial as adults considering the nature of the offences,” he said.
Family members of the victim said they are thankful to the judiciary for taking the allegations seriously and hoped that none of those responsible would escape appropriate punishment merely because of their age.
“One of the accused in this case was a minor according to the police and we did not want anyone involved in this crime to escape punishment. We want equal accountability, and we thank the court for this decision,” a family member said.
Also Read: Tobacco use causes nearly 8,000 preventable deaths annually in Meghalaya: NTCP Official
Also Watch
Find latest news from every corner of Northeast India at hubnetwork.in, your online source for breaking news, video coverage.
Also, Follow us on-
Twitter-twitter.com/nemediahub
Youtube channel- www.youtube.com/@NortheastMediaHub2020
Instagram- www.instagram.com/ne_media_hub
Download our app from playstore – Northeast Media Hub
The post Assam’s Juvenile Justice Board allows 17-year-old rape accused to be tried as an adult appeared first on Hub News.