LS passes Juvenile Justice Bill

New Delhi: The Juvenile Justice Bill which provides that children between the age of 16 and 18 would be tried as adults for heinous crimes was passed by the Lok Sabha on Thursday.
The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, which replaces the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, was moved for consideration by Minister for Women and Child Welfare Maneka Gandhi yesterday. The Bill also provides that any 16-18-year old, who commits a lesser, ie, serious offence, may be tried as an adult only if he is apprehended after the age of 21 years. ” There is no violation of Article 21 of the Constitution,” she said. She said that different countries have adopted different age limits in juvenile justice. ”Hence, it is important to define the age,” she said. She said the ultimate aim of the Juvenile Justice Bill was to take reformative measures which include Behaviour Therapy and Modification Therapy. ” We have added child friendly procedures in the Bill and two new clauses — awareness generation and monitoring,” she said. She said this Bill was more about strengthening child protection. (UNI)