BHRC Chairman Justice (Rtd.) S N Jha passed the order directing the Principal Secretary (Home) to pay the applicant Anil Kumar a compensation of Rupees four lakh within six weeks of receipt of this order and submit a compliance report on the next date of hearing.
Kumar, a native of Kothia village in Patna district, had filed an application before the BHRC for compensation for being kept in illegal detention as a convict for five years and eight months.
As per the brief facts of the case, the applicant was put on trial after investigation and commitment under the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code in connection with a case lodged against him in 1990 under sections of the IPC and the Arms Act. He was released on bail by the session judge on the ground of being a juvenile as he was born in 1977 as per his birth certificate.
However, additional session judge (fast track court - II) Ram Pravesh Chaubey convicted and sentenced Kumar to life imprionsment and three years imprisonment under the Arms Act.
The commission observed that the applicant was a juvenile on the date of occurrence of the incident and therefore under the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act, 1986 and Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 he could not be dealt with like an ordinary accused as per the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code.
This plea of the applicant found favour with the Patna High court and a division bench in an order on March 5, 2012, held that since the applicant was a juvenile, it set aside his conviction and directed for his release forthwith, but by that time he had served five years and eight months in prison, the BHRC said.