KATHMANDU, SEPTEMBER 9The Supreme Court has issued a directive order to districts courts to adjudicate cases of children in conflict with law within 120 days, as provisioned in Article 37 of the Act relating to Children, 2018. Supreme Court rules commuting Koirala's sentence was wrong SC gives cops 24 hours to produce Secy Raut in court A grand bench of Supreme Court Justices, Prakash Man Singh Raut, Sapana Pradhan Malla and Til Prasad Shrestha passed the verdict in a habeas corpus writ petition filed by a juvenile lodged at a Bhaktapur based child correction centre in a homicide case.The full text of the verdict passed by the grand bench of the apex court on March 23 was released in the weekend.

The 17-year-old writ petitioner, a resident of Dolakha district, who was given the name - Kalinchowk 120 - had filed the writ petition arguing that his detention was illegal as his case, which was supposed to be adjudicated within 120 days in accordance with Section 37 of the Act relating to Children, 1998, had not be disposed of yet. Section 37 of the Act stipulates: Notwithstanding anything contained in the prevailing laws, the Juvenile Court shall generally dispose of a case within 120 days from the date of filing the case and the proceeding and adjudication of such a case shall be made on the basis of continuous hearing.The SC ruled that since Section 37 used the term 'generally' the boy's detention could not be termed illegal and hence there was no need to issue a habeas corpus writ.

The top court, however, directed Dolakha District Court to adjudicate the writ petitioner's case soon by conducting continuous hearing.

It directed the National Forensic Science Laboratory and Central Police Forensic Lab to immediately provide the laboratory report related to children in conflict with law.The bench also told its administration to ensure in its monitoring check list whether or not district courts had adjudicated cases involving children in conflict with law within 120 days.The bench ordered its administration to write to all district courts telling them to list causes of delay in the adjudication of cases if the district courts fail to adjudicate cases within 120 days.

The bench also directed the Judicial Council not to deploy district judges hearing cases of children in conflict with law as chief election officers and if such district judges have to be sent for the same job anyway, provisions should be made to enable such judges to conduct hearing in cases of children in conflict with law.The juvenile had argued that Dolakha District Court did not follow the Act relating to Children when the district, judges, instead of a child bench, conducted his trial hearing and sent him to child correction centre till the adjudication of his case.

The SC ruled that Dolakha District Court had not violated any law when it conducted trial hearing because the prevailing laws provides for decisive role of the district judge in case a child bench cannot be formed for any reason.The government had filed a homicide case against the minor on 15 June 2022.

The juvenile writ petitioner had argued that his case had to be adjudicated within 120 days from the filing of the case or by 13 October 2022.A version of this article appears in the print on September 10, 2023, of The Himalayan Times. .

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