Lodging juveniles in adult prisons amount to a deprivation of their personal liberty - SC

Case: Vinod Katara vs the State of UP
Court: Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and JB Pardiwala

The Top Court held that lodging juveniles in adult prisons amount to a deprivation of their personal liberty. The bench said that personal liberty is one of the oldest concepts to "be purported by national courts."

The SC made these observations while hearing the plea of a murder convict serving life in prison. According to the convict, he was 14 years old at the time of the offence. He requested directions to the State of Uttar Pradesh (UP) for verification of his exact age.

In 2016, the conviction of the petitioner was upheld by the SC. However, he did not raise any issue of juvenility at the time. Later, as suggested by the state medical board, the petitioner underwent an age determination test, which too did not confirm his juvenility. Thereafter, he discovered a family register, where his birth year was recorded as 1968. This means that during the time of the offence, he would have been 14 years.

In the present case, the bench also held that, based on the headmaster's opinion, the petitioner appeared one or two years older than the age claimed by him, or claimed to be older while being arrested would not hold much water. Two judges ordered the petitioner to undergo an ossification test or any other latest medical age determination test.

The bench also directed Sessions Court, Agra, examine the petitioner's juvenility claim within one month.

However, highlighting that the family register assumes importance because the ossification test report may not help determine the exact age, the Sessions Court was asked to examine the authenticity and genuineness of the family register as well.

A report was sought in one month.