Being below 18 years may not be enough for suspect to dodge trial as an adult if he is found guilty, since charges are rape & murder, considered 'heinous crime' under Juvenile Justice Act.
The top court, which was hearing a PIL & intervention pleas of activists & lawyers, was told that no fair trial was possible in UP as the investigation has been allegedly botched up.
The PIL, filed by a Dalit activist, said the State machinery is using all efforts to ensure the accused remain well-shielded, including manipulation & destruction of the evidence.
The CBI team called the victim's brother to identify the place and directed the local police to cordon off the crime scene, nearly a month after the alleged incident.
The FIR withheld the name of the Hathras victim, concealed using a whitening ink, but it was decided to withdraw it from public domain to avoid unnecessary controversy.
A powerful civil servant, a BJP gen secy and former Man Friday of Mayawati & Akhilesh are the faces of UP administration as it draws flak for Hathras incident.
The bench had asked the woman's parents to apprise the court of their versions of the incident & ordered Hathras district administration to arrange for their travel to the court.
Central govt notified Sunday that the CBI will take over the investigation, and the agency's Ghaziabad branch under Lucknow zone will conduct a fresh probe.
The last time this matter flared up was when Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, in a very similar directive in April, called for the relocation of stray dogs in the capital.
Finance ministry says the proposed revamp will focus on structural reforms, rate rationalisation & ease of living, & will be deliberated upon in the coming weeks.
The project is meant to be a ‘protective shield that will keep expanding’, the PM said. It is on the lines of the ‘Golden Dome’ announced by Trump, it is learnt.
Now that both IAF and PAF have made formal claims of having shot down the other’s aircraft in the 87-hour war in May, we can ask a larger question: do such numbers really matter?
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