Nirbhaya rape case: Ahead of juvenile offender's release, human rights body issues notice to Centre

New Delhi: The National Human Rights Commission has issued notices to the Centre and to the Delhi government on a complaint by the parents of the 16 December gangrape victim, apprehending threat to society from the juvenile convict in the case who is set to be released next month. The Commission has taken cognisance of the complaint by the parents of the girl, who was brutally gangraped and murdered in Delhi on 16 December in 2012. “They have stated that the juvenile, who was largely responsible for the death of their daughter and was the most brutal amongst all the offenders, is supposed to be released sometime in December. [caption id=“attachment_2064371” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Reuters[/caption] “They have submitted that such persons are threat to the life and liberty of the common man. There should be a mechanism to keep a strict check on them so that people are not subjected to any risk of being harmed. The complainants have also stated that the rate of recidivism (committing crimes again) is fairly high,” said an NHRC statement. The parents have requested the Commission to recommend to the Government to prepare a plan to protect the citizens from such delinquent juveniles post their release and also to strengthen the extant laws on the subject. The complainants have also cited that similar laws like SORNA (Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act) that requires states to monitor and track convicted sex offenders following their release into the community and operates in countries such as USA, Canada and others should be implemented in India. The Commission on its part observed that “There is no doubt that the complainants have undergone extreme agony and pain after the incident of rape and murder of their daughter. The fears expressed by them need to be looked into”. The parents have also made a representation to the Home Minister on the same and submitted the copy of the representation to the Commission along with the complaint. Accordingly, the Commission has issued notices with a copy of the complaint to the Secretary, Delhi, the Commissioner of Police, Delhi and the Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs and sought reports in the matter within two weeks. The Commission has further asked the Chief Secretary in Delhi government to inform whether any pre-release and post release plan as per Rule 17(3) of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Rules, 2007 has been prepared in the case of the juvenile. If yes, copies of the same may be furnished to the Commission. The Chief Secretary has been asked to inform whether the juvenile has been recently subjected to psychological or psychiatric assessment for assessing his mental health. If yes, a copy of the psychological assessment report shall be furnished. The Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs has also been asked to inform about the action, if any, taken on the representation submitted by the complainants. PTI