JUSTICE DELAYED IS JUSTICE DENIED

Though the Delhi gang rape on 16^th December shook the nation and forced the government to act, though the victim was awarded for her courage by the Indian and the US governments and the government established the Nirbhaya Fund, it still seems that our law has not fully taken its due course when it comes to dealing with minors and juvenile crimes. The J S Verma Committee led to changes in laws and death penalty in case of rape. According to Minister of Law and Justice, Ashwani Kumar, 90 percent of the suggestions given by the Verma Committee Report have been incorporated into the Ordinance. What is surprising is the extent of the crime that occurred, which cannot be described in words for its extremely disturbing nature, wherein a minor was the most brutal attacker of all. The minor lied to the girl and her friend that it was going towards their destination. According to the International Business Times, a police spokesman said that the minor was the most brutal attacker and had “sexually abused his victim twice and ripped out her intestines with his bare hands”. But it seems that the government still wants to stick to its old law where a minor is one below age 17 while the JS Verma Committee recommends that 16 year olds should be considered minor. Now, this throws up various debatable and troubling questions. 

 Can this boy be let off given the degree of his crime just by a year’s difference? Also, should the government be lenient towards him when the minor’s exact age is actually not known? Is he really that innocent just because he is 17 years old? Should he be given lesser punishment or sent for rehab by the juvenile court? Isn’t this an exceptional case where common sense and conscience has a bigger role to play than our decades old law whose fathers did not imagine such a crime by a minor?

The issue is extremely debatable and may take a long time to settle down. However, there are some psychologists and common citizens who think that the minor must be given a chance to reform than be given death sentence or sent to jail. Actor-activist Rahul Bose too made a controversial statement when he said that he wants the minor to be reformed.

“The minor must be given a chance to reform as society can be transformed through forgiveness and imparting social values especially at a tender age. That same minor who committed such a heinous crime can be taught to see what he has done and become a fighter of crimes against women tomorrow. There could be a lot behind all this and usually people at that age are immature and take wrong decisions” feels A. Manoj, a teacher.

However, many people want the minor to be hanged, “he is a torture to the society, he must be hanged” says Sandhya Reddy, a housewife, while some want him to get life-term, “We cannot say if such people can be reformed, tomorrow if they are allowed to roam freely then women of this country will be unsafe again and justice will fail us, he should atleast be given life-term in jail” says Harsh Sharma, a banker.

But, whatever be the case, we can only hope that true justice is delivered, and on time.

By Yusra Hussain