Prez nod to trial of juveniles as adults for serious crimes

January 04, 2016 19:21

Juveniles of 16 years of age and above can now be tried as adults if they commit heinous offences like rape and murder as President Pranab Mukherjee has given assent to an Act in this regard.

The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, got Mukherjee's nod recently, official sources said.

The lowering of the age from the existing 18 years means that those aged 16 and above will no longer enjoy protection under the Juvenile Justice law, under which juveniles cannot be tried under the normal law of the land that provides punishment of up to death for rape and murder.

Under the juvenile law till now, even those accused of heinous offences like rape could be tried only by Juvenile Justice Boards and, if found guilty, could not be jailed for more than three years.

The demand for reducing the age for trying juveniles for heinous crimes was made following the December, 2012, Delhi gangrape case, in which a paramedical student was brutally gangraped and mercilessly assaulted in a moving bus in the national capital.

« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES

ASI crushed to death by tractor-trolly used for illegal sand mining in MP

Two persons have been arrested in connection with the incident which took place on the intervening night of Saturday-Sunday in Badoli village under Beohari police station limits, 90 km from the district headquarters, Superintendent of...

'RCB off the ventilator but still in the ICU'

After a comfortable victory over Gujarat Titans, former India all-rounder Ajay Jadeja believes Royal Challengers Bengaluru's bowlers have started to click in IPL 2024.

Pujara's ton puts Sussex on top vs Derbyshire

India batter Cheteshwar Pujara's unbeaten 104 helped Sussex extend their first innings lead to 111 runs in their County Championship Division Two match against Derbyshire on Saturday.

19-year-old lynched over 'sacrilege' charge in Punjab's Ferozepur

Bakshish Singh, a resident of Talli Gulam village, allegedly tore some pages of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of the Sikhs, after entering the premises of the gurdwara in Bandala village, they said.

SRH looking to exploit batter-friendly Wankhede vs MI

The Pat Cummins-led side is in the midst of an intense battle between multiple teams who are bidding for spots in the final four, with Rajasthan Royals (16 points), Kolkata Knight Riders (14 points) and Lucknow Super Giants (12 points)...