The Supreme Court has asked the government to re-visit the law so that a juvenile cannot get away with heinous crimes like rape and murder by claiming he is too young to understand the consequences of his crime. A Bench of Justices Dipak Misra and P.C. Pant yesterday asked the government to see whether necessary changes in various laws dealing with juveniles could be done to have a deterrent effect.
The bench observed that it can no longer shut its eyes to the danger posed to society by juveniles accused of heinous crimes like rape, dacoity, murder and drug-peddling. The order comes even as Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi showed grave concern and admitted to an increase in such crimes by juveniles.
The bench asked the Attorney General to consult competent authorities and suggest to it whether the relevant laws can be re-looked, re-scrutinized and re-visited for sending a message to the society that life of the victim was equally important under the rule of law.
It said the spurt in involvement of minors in heinous crimes like rape, murder and dacoity stressed the imperative need to mull changes in the Juvenile Justice Care andProtection of Children Act, 2000. The bench was hearing an appeal against the decision of Punjab and Haryana High Court awarding life sentence to a murder accused.