Try Kathua rape-murder accused as adult, says Supreme Court

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 16

Holding that the eighth accused in the case of gang-rape and murder of an eight-year-old nomadic girl in Kathua in January 2018 was not a juvenile, the Supreme Court on Wednesday said he had to be tried as an adult.

“The impugned order passed by the CJM, Kathua, and the High Court is set aside. It is held that the respondent accused was not a juvenile at the time of commission of the offence and should be tried the way other co-accused were tried in accordance with the law. Law to take its own course,” a Bench of Justice Ajay Rastogi and Justice JB Pardiwala said, allowing the appeal filed by the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

Accused Shubam’s claim rejected

• Top court rejects accused Shubam Sangra’s claim that he was a juvenile at time of commission of the crime in January 2018.
• In all, eight were arrested. Shubam Sangra is yet to be tried.
• In June 2019, trial court convicted six while one was acquitted.

Going by the birth certificate, Kathua Chief Judicial Magistrate had on March 27, 2018, held that accused Shubam Sangra was a juvenile on the date of the commission of the offence and the finding was affirmed by the J&K High Court on October 11, 2019.

“In the overall view of the matter, we are convinced that the order passed by the HC affirming the CJM’s order is not sustainable in law,” said the Bench.

The top court accepted the submission of senior counsel PS Patwalia — representing the J&K administration — that the certificate issued by a five-member Special Medical Board of Government Medical College, Jammu, made it abundantly clear that the age of the respondent accused at the time of commission of the offence could be between 19 and 23 years.

In all, eight accused were arrested in the case. Since one of them claimed to be a juvenile, his trial was separated. On June 10, 2019, the trial court convicted six of them while one accused was acquitted. Sanji Ram, Deepak Khajuria and Parvesh Kumar were sentenced to life imprisonment for 25 years with a fine of Rs 1 lakh each. The other three accused persons — Tilak Raj, Anand Dutta and Surinder Kumar — were sentenced to five-year imprisonment for destroying evidence. Vishal Jangotra, son of Sanji Ram, was acquitted for want of evidence.

Shubam, who is yet to be tried, claimed to be a juvenile at the time of commission of the offence on the ground that he was born on October 23, 2002.

Writing the verdict for the Bench, Justice Pardiwala, however, said, “We have made ourselves very clear that the documents evidencing the date of birth does not inspire any confidence and there is no other option but to fall back on the report of the Special Medical Board in the interest of justice.”

The top court held that medical opinion regarding the age of an accused could not be “brushed aside” in the absence of statutory proof on the same issue. “Medical opinion regarding age in the absence of any other conclusive evidence should be considered to determine the age range of the accused.... Whether medical evidence can be relied upon or not depends on the value of evidence,” it noted.

About The Author

Tribune News Service

The Tribune News Service brings you the latest news, analysis and insights from the region, India and around the world. Follow the Tribune News Service for a wide-ranging coverage of events as they unfold, with perspective and clarity.

Join Whatsapp Channel of The Tribune for latest updates.

#Kathua #supreme court