The Supreme Court has said the accused in the 2018 rape and murder of a minor girl in Kathua should be tried as adult and not juvenile.
The bench of Justice Ajay Rastogi and Justice JB Pardiwala have said that as per evidence, the accused had attained the age of 18 at the time of commission of offence and as conclusive proof, medical opinion will be considered.
The Court said the medical opinion should be considered to determine the age range of the accused. It further said that whether medical evidence can be relied upon or not depends on value of evidence.
The Court said the order passed by CJM Kathua is set aside and thus the accused is held not to be a juvenile at the time of the crime.
The judgment was passed after an appeal was filed by the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir against an order delivered in this regard by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.
The High Court had affirmed the trial court order which found the main accused to be a juvenile.
The victim, an 8-year-old child belonging to the nomadic Bakerwal community, was found dead on January 17, 2018.
As the case was sensitive, the Apex Court had transferred the trial to Pathankot in May 2018.
The trial court in Pathankot had convicted 6 of the 7 accused in the case and acquitted one, giving him the benefit of doubt.
The accused, Shubham Sangra, was being tried before the Juvenile Justice Board but the Apex Court stayed the proceedings in 2020 after the present plea was filed.