A petition challenging the release of the juvenile guilty of raping and torturing a paramedical student on a moving bus in Delhi in 2012 has been rejected by the Supreme Court, which questioned: "Under what jurisdiction can we extend his detention?" The convict, now 20, was released on Sunday evening from a correctional home to a non-profit organization.

A vacation bench comprising Justices AK Goel and UU Lalit will hear the Delhi Commission for Women's plea this morning.

In a midnight drama on Saturday, the DCW appealed to the Supreme Court to bar juvenile's release. DCW chief Swati Maliwal reached the apex court at midnight to file a Special Leave Petition but the court had said there was no urgency for a midnight hearing and has listed the hearing for Monday.


Maliwal had said, "We have filed our petition. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear our case on Monday. It has been listed as the third item on the list, the matter is sub-judice. I hope the juvenile will not be released till the hearing."The grounds which has been taken in the appeal against the Delhi High Court order said that no mental assessment of the state of mind of the juvenile offender has been taken into account for his release.


Advocate Devdutt Kamath said that there are intelligence reports that even during his stay in the provision home, the convict was not remorseful of his action and he has been further radicalised. So at this stage, it cannot be said that he is not a threat to the society.The SLP has also stated that though the High Court was of the view that there was a need for mental assessment of the convict, there was no direction that before his release the authorities should go for a health and mental assessment of the offender.


Further, it is submitted in the petition that there is also likely to be threat to his own life as reports are appearing that there is anger and tension between two groups in his own village.


Pic: Asha Devi Singh, the victim's mother protesting the release of the juvenile convict on Sunday.