Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Tuesday directed release of the juvenile accused in Pune’s Porsche fatal accident on May 19 in which he crashed his car into a bike killing 2 persons.
A bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande observed that the custody order of the juvenile was illegal and passed without jurisdiction.
Quashing his custody orders passed by the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) which were passed after granting him bail, the high court has directed that his custody will be handed to his paternal aunt. The judges said that actions by the authorities were a knee-jerk reaction following public outcry.
The judges said they are bound by law, the aims and objectives of the Juvenile Justice Act and must treat him as any child in conflict with law separately from adult , despite the seriousness of the crime.
The court clarified that he is already under rehabilitation which is a primary objective. Also, the court has directed him to continue the counselling by the psychologist as as the JJB order.
“We are allowing the habeas corpus (produce person in court) filed by the aunt,” the bench said.
Details On The Horrific Porsche Accident
On May 19, a juvenile allegedly crashed his Porsche car into a bike, killing two persons – Aneesh Awadhiya and Ashwini Koshta. The juvenile was allegedly intoxicated and driving at a high speed. The Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) granted him bail on the same day and ordered to be under the care and supervision of his parents and grandfather. Following an uproar, the police then sought amendment to the bail order by the JJB. On May 22, JJB ordered the boy to be taken into custody and remanded him to an observation home. The boy is currently in an observation home till June 25.
Last week, the boy’s paternal aunt filed a habeas corpus (produce person in court) petition claiming that he was illegally detained and sought his immediate release.
