Rape-accused juvenile given bail with education rider

Rape-accused juvenile given bail with education rider

Ajay.Sura@timesgroup.com

Chandigarh:12,10,2021

The Punjab and Haryana high court has granted bail to a juvenile, who was accused of raping a woman older than him, after the legal and probation officer’s report stated that the alleged offence had been committed by him “under the influence of his company”. The court, however, allowed this concession on the condition that his parents would provide him education to enable him to get gainful employment.

The HC also directed the parents to ensure that the boy does not “come in association with a person of criminal antecedents” and is not exposed to any physical, moral and psychological danger. “The parents of the petitioner shall file an affidavit to this effect before the Principal Magistrate, Juvenile Justice Board, Nuh,” observed the HC.

The court, however, made it clear that if the parents failed to comply with these conditions, the bail granted to the boy would be cancelled.

Justice Manjari Nehru Kaul of the HC passed these orders while allowing a revision petition filed by the child from Haryana’s Nuh, seeking release on bail in the rape case. The allegation is that in March 2020, he along with others had allegedly dragged a womaninto a car and raped her.He was arrested in this case and his plea for bail was rejected by the JJB and the district court Nuh after which he had approached the HC.

Counsel for the petitioner submitted that the victim in this case had attained the age of majority and was in a relationship with the petitioner. She had accompanied him of her own accord on the date of the alleged crime. Despite the name of the petitioner having been told to the family by her sister-in-law, they kept quiet and it was only after the prosecutrix (victim) allegedly returned home after two days of the alleged kidnapping, they chose to report the crime to police.