IMPORTANT POINT
Claim of juvenility – Once accused has chosen to take plea of juvenility before trial court, before High Court and also before Supreme Court and said plea has been rejected, it is not open to accused to reagitate plea of juvenility by filing fresh application under Section 7A of JJ Act.

ORDER :

1. Accused Pawan Kumar Gupta has filed this SLP challenging the order dated 19.12.2019 passed by the High Court of Delhi in Criminal Revision Petition No. 1301 of 2019 dismissing the claim of the petitioner of juvenility.

2. Contention of the petitioner Pawan Kumar Gupta is that he was a juvenile at the time of commission of the offence and that the same is apparent from the School Leaving Certificate issued in his favour by Gayatri Bal Sanskar Shala, Narayan Pur, Tanda, District Ambedkar Nagar, Uttar Pradesh. According to the petitioner, as per the said certificate, his date of birth is 08.10.1996 and therefore, on the date of alleged incident i.e. 16.12.2012, the petitioner was aged only 16 years 02 months and 08 days and that he was a juvenile on the date of the alleged commission of the offence. Contention of the petitioner is that the certificate has been found to be genuine by the investigating officials and therefore, prayed for holding an enquiry in terms of Section 7A of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 (for short “JJ Act”). According to the petitioner Pawan Kumar Gupta, as per Section 21 of the Act, no child in conflict with law shall be sentenced to death or imprisonment for life. The said petition was dismissed by the Additional Sessions Judge, FTC Court No. 7 by order dated 21.12.2018. In the said order dated 21.12.2018, the learned Sessions Judge referred to the order dated 10.01.2013 passed by the learned Metropolitan Magistrate. The learned Sessions Judge also referred to the order of the Supreme Court dated 09.07.2018 in and by which the Supreme Court had inter-alia rejected the plea of juvenility taken by the petitioner Pawan Kumar Gupta while dismissing the review petition. The learned Sessions Judge held that the Supreme Court has held that the petitioner is not a juvenile on the date of commission of the offence and in view of the order passed by the Supreme Court dated 09.07.2018, the Sessions Judge would have no jurisdiction to determine the age of the petitioner Pawan Kumar Gupta in terms of Section 7A of the JJ Act.

3. By the impugned order, the High Court also referred to the order of the Supreme Court dated 09.07.2018 and pointed out that the Supreme Court had taken note that the investigating officials have verified the School Leaving Certificate from the concerned school authorities and the order passed by the Metropolitan Magistrate dated 10.01.2013 and after consideration of all the documents, the Supreme Court negatived the plea of juvenility taken by the petitioner Pawan Kumar Gupta by its order dated 09.07.2018. In the impugned order, the High Court in detail referred to the order passed by the learned Metropolitan Magistrate dated 10.01.2013 and the order of the Supreme Court dated 09.07.2018 and rejected the plea of juvenility raised by the petitioner. While dismissing the plea of juvenility, the High Court had noted that the petitioner had earlier raised the plea of juvenility in the review petition filed before the Supreme Court against the death penalty awarded to him and that the same was dismissed by the Supreme Court on 09.07.2018.

4. We have heard Mr. A.P. Singh, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner and Mr. Tushar Mehta, learned Solicitor General and Mr. Siddharth Luthra, learned Senior counsel appearing for the NCT of Delhi and perused the impugned order and other materials on record.

5. Mr. A.P. Singh, learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that the High Court has passed the order without hearing him. In that view, we have taken note of the grievance of the petitioner on merits. We have heard Mr. A.P. Singh at length and considered his submissions on merits and the grounds raised in the SLP.

6. Contending that the plea of juvenility can be raised at any stage, learned counsel for the petitioner placed reliance upon Ram Narain vs. State of Uttar Pradesh, (2015) 17 SCC 699 and Upendra Pradhan vs. State of Orissa, (2015) 11 SCC 124. T