New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the plea by Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) opposing the release of juvenile accused in the December 16 gangrape and murder case.
"We share your concern," the apex court vacation bench comprising Justice AK Goel and Justice UU Lalit observed, while dismissing the plea by the DCW.
"If anything has to be done, it has to be done according to the law. We have to enforce the law," the bench said.
In the petition, DCW had pitched for not releasing the juvenile convict until his mental reformation is ascertained.
The bench did not agree with the submission that the juvenile offender can be subjected to the reformation process for a further period of two years under the juvenile law.
"Will we not taking away somebody's right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. There is nothing in the law to provide that," the bench said when the counsel for DCW cited provisions to drive home the point that the delinquent juvenile can be allowed to go through the further reformation process.
The convict, who is now 20 years old, was shifted from a correctional centre to an NGO yesterday.
Also Read: Juvenile convict in 'Nirbhaya' gangrape case walks free
Meanwhile, the victim's mother said that she wanted justice for her daughter and said steps should have been taken long before to not set him free.
Six persons, including the juvenile, had brutally assaulted and gangraped a 23-year-old paramedical student in the moving bus on December 16 night in 2012. The victim died in a Singapore hospital later.
Four of the accused were awarded death penalty by trial court which was later confirmed by Delhi High Court. Their appeals are pending before the Supreme Court. Another accused, Ram Singh, had allegedly committed suicide in Tihar Jail in 2013.
Black day for women of country, says DCW
DCW chief Swati Maliwal today termed it a "black day" for women after the Supreme Court dismissed her last-minute plea against the release of juvenile convict.
She said that the country has been "cheated" as a proposed law which could have allowed stronger punishment to him remains pending in Rajya Sabha.
"It is a black day for women in history of the country. I also believe that the Rajya Sabha has cheated the country by keeping the law pending which could have facilitated stronger punishment for juveniles in heinous crimes," Swati told reporters outside the Supreme Court.
She was referring to the bill to amend the Juvenile Justice Act which remains stuck in the Rajya Sabha. The proposed amendment bill seeks stringent punishment for children aged 16-18 years involved in heinous crimes.
"The judges told me that they share our concerns but there is no provision to subvert the existing law. I think the time for candle marches is over and women should pick up mashaals (torches) instead to demand for justice," Swati said.
'How many Nirbhayas needed for laws to change?'
With the Supreme Court rejecting the plea, the parents of the December 16 gangrape victim said the courts have failed them and asked how many Nirbhayas would it take for the laws to change.
"We were not very hopeful that the Supreme Court will give a favourable verdict but I want to ask how many Nirbhayas are needed for the laws to change in the country," the victim's father Badri Singh Pandey told reporters.
"The court is not bothered about the concerns of the public....This fight is not just about Nirbhaya but for every girl who is unsafe in a country which has such laws," he added.
"I will not be defeated, the SC decision can't stop me, I have to fight a long battle, I will fight till the bill is passed and law is changed. The court is saying that the law does not permit further punishment for the juvenile but why is the case against other convicts still pending. Why have they not been hanged yet?," victim's mother Asha Devi said.
