IMPORTANT POINT
A Juvenile arrested in a bailable or non-bailable offence and brought before Juvenile Court has to be released on bail except where it appears reasonable grounds for believing that the release was likely to bring him into association with known criminals or expose him to moral danger or his release would defeat ends of justice.

JUDGMENT

P.K. Jain. J. - Heard learned Counsels for the parties. Bail prayer on behalf of the applicant is pressed on the ground that he is assigned the role of exhortation and conspiring with actual assailants and that the applicant's age is below 16 years and thus he is juvenile. Learned A.G.A. submits that considering heinous nature of the offence the applicant is not entitled to bail. The plea regarding age of the applicant was also taken before the learned Sessions Judge. It is really shocking that the learned Sessions Judge without adverting to the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act, 1986 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) brushed aside the arguments by observing that merely on the ground that the applicants are minors they are not entitled to bail.

2. Juvenile Justice Act, 1986 came into force w.e.f. October 2, 1987 vide Official Gazette Notification dated 13-8-1987. Section 7(1) of the Act confers exclusive jurisdiction upon the Board of Juvenile Court constituted for the area with regard to all proceedings relating to neglected juveniles or delinquent juveniles. Section 2(e) of the Act defines "delinquent juvenile" as a juvenile who has been found to have committed an offence Sub-clause (3) of Section 7 of the Act further provides that the powers conferred on the Board or Juvenile Court by or under this Act may also be exercised by the High Court and the Court of Sessions, when the proceeding comes before them in appeal, revision or otherwise. Section 37(1) of the Act specifically provides that any person aggrieved by an order made by a competent authority under this Act may, within thirty days from the date of such order, prefer an appeal to the Court of Session and Section 38 of the Act provides that the High Court may, at any time, either of its own motion or on an application received in this behalf, call for the record of any proceeding in which any competent authority or Court of Session has passed an order for the purpose of satisfying itself as to the legality or propriety of any such order and may pass such order in relation thereto as it thinks fit. Section 18 of the Act provides that when any person accused of a bailable or non-bailable offence and apparently a juvenile is arrested or detained or appears or is brought before a Juvenile Court, such person shall notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974) or in any other law for the time being in force, be released on bail with or without surety but he shall not be so released if there appear reasonable grounds for believing that the release is likely to bring him into association with any known criminal or expose him to moral danger or that his release would defeat the ends of justice.

3. The learned Sessions Judge has over-looked all the above provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act. It has been found that most of the Sessions Judges while dealing with cases in which a plea of an accused being a juvenile, i.e. a male below the age of 16 years and in a female below the age of 18 years, is taken do not take recourse to the provisions of Juvenile Justice Act. As pointed out above. Section 7(1) of the Act confers exclusive powers and jurisdiction upon the Juvenile Court or Juvenile Welfare Board to deal with all proceedings including proceeding in connection with trial for an offence, relating to neglected Juveniles or delinquent Juveniles. Section 8(1) of the Act provides that when any Magistrate not empowered to exercise the powers of a Board or a Juvenile Court under this Act is of opinion that a person brought before him under any of the provisions of this Act (otherwise than for the purpose of giving evidence) is a Juvenile, he shall record such opinion and forward the juvenile and the record of the proceeding to the competent authority having jurisdiction over the proceeding. Under Sub-section (2) of Section 8 of the Act, the competent authority is required to hold enquiry as if the juvenile had originally b