Patna High Court Allows Convict To Raise Plea Of Juvenility 32 Yrs After Alleged Offence, Says It Can Be Raised At Any Stage

The Patna High Court has reiterated that the plea of juvenility can be raised by an accused in a criminal case at any stage of proceedings, even after final disposal of the case.

Justice Jitendra Kumar thus directed the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) Siwan, to conduct an inquiry into the juvenility claim of one of the eight appellants convicted in a 1993 attempt to murder case.

The direction came in a criminal appeal filed against the 2017 conviction by a Siwan fast-track sessions court that sentenced all eight accused under Sections 307, 148, 149, and 326 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

During the appeal, Appellant No.8, raised a plea of juvenility for the first time. He submitted a matriculation certificate issued by the Bihar School Examination Board indicating his date of birth as June 15, 1975, making him 17 years, 11 months, and 15 days old on the date of the alleged offence (June 1, 1993).

Citing the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, and its 2006 amendment, the appellant argued that despite the offence being committed under the regime of the Juvenile Justice Act, 1986 (which defined a juvenile as below 16 years for males), he is entitled to protection under the 2000 Act, which retrospectively raised the age to 18.

The Additional Public Prosecutor opposed the plea, contending that the appellant was above 16 at the time of the occurrence and could not be considered a juvenile under the 1986 Act. The APP maintained that the 2000 Act could not be applied retrospectively.

Court's Findings

Justice Jitendra Kumar rejected the State's objections, relying on a catena of Supreme Court judgments, including Hari Ram v. State of Rajasthan [(2009) 13 SCC 211], Daya Nand v. State of Haryana [(2011) 2 SCC 224], and Raju v. State of Haryana [(2019) 14 SCC 401]. The Court reiterated that the 2000 Act, as amended in 2006, applies to all pending cases, whether trial, revision, or appeal.

The court relied on Ashok Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh, (2023) 15 SCC 251 where the Supreme Court held that, “Even though the offence in this case may have been committed before the enactment of the 2000 Act, the petitioner is entitled to the benefit of juvenility under Section 7-A of the 2000 Act, if on inquiry it is found that he was less than 18 years of age on the date of the alleged offence.”

The court also observed that “The claim of juvenility can thus be raised before any court, at any stage, even after final disposal of the case and if the court finds a person to be a juvenile on the date of commission of the offence, it is to forward the juvenile to the Board for passing appropriate orders, and the sentence, if any, passed by a court, shall be deemed to have no effect.”

It emphasized that the benefit of the doubt should go to the accused when documentary evidence such as a matriculation certificate prima facie establishes age below 18 on the date of the offence.

Thus, the court held “it is evident that the appellant would be entitled to the benefit of the 2000 Act if his age is determined to be below 18 years on the date of commission of the offence.”

Finding a prima facie case of juvenility, the Court directed the JJB, Siwan, to conduct an inquiry into the age of the Apellant starting August 18, 2025, and submit a report within three months.

Case title: Shiv Jee Singh & Ors v. State of Bihar.

Case No. CRIMINAL APPEAL (SJ) No.67 of 2018

Counsel For the Appellant/s: Mr. Dewendra Narayan Singh

Counsel For the State: Advocate Mr. Abhay Kumar, APP

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