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Supreme Court: Plea of Juvenility Can Be Raised Post Conviction & Finality of Sentence

The Supreme Court of India reaffirmed that the plea of juvenility can be raised even after a conviction and sentence have attained finality. A bench comprising Justices BV Nagarathna and N Kostiswar Singh made this ruling while acquitting an accused in a murder case who filed a plea of juvenility after his conviction and sentence were upheld by the court.


The ruling came in the case of State of Madhya Pradesh vs. Ramji Lal Sharma & Another (2024 LiveLaw SC 791). The accused had raised a plea of juvenility through a miscellaneous application even after the Supreme Court had confirmed his conviction. In response, the apex court directed the Sessions Court to examine the accused's age under Section 94 of the Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2015.


The Sessions Court's detailed examination established that the accused was a minor at the time of the offense, as his birth date was determined to be 04.10.1984. Based on this report, the Supreme Court accepted the plea of juvenility and set aside the conviction. Justice Nagarathna, who authored the judgment, cited previous Supreme Court rulings, including Pramila vs. State of Chhattisgarh (Criminal Appeal No. 64/2012), which allows for the claim of juvenility even after a conviction has attained finality.


Consequently, the court acquitted the accused, noting that he was on interim bail, and ordered that his bail bonds be canceled. The decision underscores the court's commitment to upholding the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act, ensuring that individuals who were minors at the time of the offense are treated accordingly, even after convictions have been confirmed.


The petitioner was represented by Advocate Amit Sharma, A.A.G., while the respondents were represented by Advocate Prashant Shukla.






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