On account of “heinous crime” five of six minors awaiting trial aged 16-18, set to be tried as adults in lieu of minor status.
Hyderabad: The Hyderabad Police set to try five of the six minors accused in the recent gang-rape case as adults to drive for a harder sentence.
The six accused that include five minors were arrested on Wednesday. The accused may face a life imprisonment or even death if the legal status is set to change. Police earlier this week recorded the statement of the victim before the magistrate under section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
The action has come amid extreme public outrage that the accused, which include kin from politically influential families, must be convicted heavily. The minors will be tried as adults on account of a 2015 amendment to the Juvenile Justice Act.
The amendment argues that convicts who participate in “heinous criminal offences” that attract a minimum of seven years between the age of 16-18 must be tried in the court of law and ensured to be sentenced for “maximum punishment”. The amendment nevertheless sets a criterion before the court can proceed to treat such accused as adults: mental and physical capacity, ability to predict consequences and the very circumstances of the crime.
Otherwise, a minor cannot be sentenced for a duration above three years. Police said that five in the case were involved in the act of rape, while one of the minors was only seen to be misbehaving, who will still be tried as an accessory to the crime.
The accused and the victim met at a social gathering in Hyderabad’s Jubilee Hills on the 28th of May. From where the victim was allegedly transported to a different location and raped.
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