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.
Mini deal will likely see no cut in 10% baseline tariff on Indian exports announced by Trump on 2 April, it is learnt, but additional 26% tariffs are set to be reduced.
The Chinese are said to have hired ex-fighter pilots & air force operators from NATO countries over the past several years to help them fine-tune their operational & flying capabilities.
Public, loud, upfront, filled with impropriety and high praise sometimes laced with insults. This is what we call Trumplomacy. But the larger objective is the same: American supremacy.
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