The New Indian Express ·
Kerala HC upholds JJB order to take minors for evidence collection in Karuvatta murder case
KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Tuesday upheld the Alappuzha Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) order permitting police to take three minor boys, suspected of murdering a 67-year-old man at Karuvatta, out for evidence collection. All the accused in the case are under the ambit of the Juvenile Justice (JJ) Act.
The petition was filed by the Children-in-Conflict with Law (CCL), seeking to quash the JJB’s order. The petitioners contended that, under the guise of “escorted movement," the JJB had permitted the investigating agency to take them out of the observation home, Alappuzha, and transport them through crowded public places, including railway and bus stations, solely to recover items such as apparel and discarded gloves.
Counsel for the petitioners argued that the escorted movement, to be undertaken by the Special Juvenile Police Unit (SJPU), would expose the minors to public gaze, resulting in the revelation of their identities, violating Section 74 of the JJ Act. According to the counsel, the procedure would also create a stigma by portraying the petitioners as criminals even before the JJB conducts a preliminary assessment of their mental and physical capacity to commit the alleged offence.
