 "Bill to amend Juvenile Justice Act introduced in LS")
The government on Tuesday introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha to amend the Juvenile Justice Act that will pave the way for 16-18-year-olds to be treated as adults when involved in heinous crimes.
The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection Children) Bill 2014 was introduced by Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi.
Post the horrofic gangrape of a paramedic student in Delhi in Dec 2012 in which a juvenile who was one of the main accused was let off due to his age, nationwide debate on the Juvenile Justice Act had erupted.
Lawyers and jurists are of the opinion that in certain henious crimes the age of the accused should not be a barrier and the accused should not be tried as a juvenile.