Juvenile board defers ruling on Delhi gangrape accused

The Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) Thursday deferred till July 25 its ruling on whether to try an accused in the December 16, 2012 gangrape case as an adult or a juvenile.

Principal magistrate Geetanjali Goel reserved the decision saying that the final verdict will be on July 25. She advised the media not to speculate on the decision before it comes out.

"The order on the robbery case against the juvenile will be taken up on the same day (July 25)," Rajesh Tewari, legal head council of JJB, told reporters.

If the accused, who was aged 17-and-half years at the time of the crime, is tried as a juvenile, he would face a maximum sentence of three years, including the time already spent in custody. He turned 18 last month.

"We will not be satisfied till he is punished. We want all the six accused to get tough punishment, it should be either death sentence or life imprisonment. If any lesser punishment is given to them. it will not be justice to our daughter. We are waiting for the final verdict," the victim's father told IANS.

The family of the victim, as well as social groups, have been demanding that the youth should be tried and punished as an adult, in view of the gravity of his crime. As an adult, he could be sentenced to death or get the life term.

A 23-year-old woman was gangraped and brutally assaulted in a moving bus in Delhi December 16 last year. She later died in a Singapore hospital December 29. Six people, including the juvenile, were arrested in the case.

While accused Ram Singh, Mukesh, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma and Akshay Thakur were tried by a fast track court in Saket in south Delhi, the juvenile's case was heard by the JJB.

The case against Ram Singh was dropped after he was found dead, hanging in his cell in Tihar Jail here.