Claim of juvenility

Claim of juvenility, whether can be made at belated stage, was the question which fell for consideration before Apex Court recently. Their Lordships held that, in view of the statutory provisions of Section 7A of the Juvenile Justice ( Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, as amended in 2009, the accused has right to raise the question of juvenility at any point of time, and if such an issue is raised, the Court is under an obligation to make an inquiry and deal with the question. The said Section has to be read along with Rule 12 of Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Rules, as amended in 2007.

Anil Agarwala-vs- State of West Bengal reported in 2011(2) SCALE 429.