The Bombay High Court today sought a reply from the Maharashtra government on alleged questioning by police of a five-year-old boy, accused of molesting a classmate.
The division bench headed by Justice V M Kanade has taken suo moto cognisance of a letter referring to a news report which said that police had picked up the boy from a school in Antop Hill area and questioned him in December last year.
Dr K P Ashu Mukundan, assistant professor at Centre for Criminology and Justice and director with the resource cell for Juvenile Justice, had pointed out in the letter to the Chief Justice that no act committed by a child below seven years of age could be treated as a crime, according to Indian Penal Code.
Further, she said the girl had undergone medical treatment at hospital for injuries, which indicated that an adult person was probably involved in the case.
"The implication of a five-year-old boy looks like an attempt by the police to shield an adult who may actually be the culprit," she said.
