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Showing contexts for: general diary in Asifa vs State Of Kerala on 24 June, 2024Matching Fragments
Thus the offences committed by a juvenile in driving a motor vehicle fall under the category of petty offences.
14. As per Rule 8 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Model Rules, 2016 (for short 'the JJ Model Rules') enacted in exercise of the powers under section 110 of the JJ Act, no FIR should be registered against a child, except when a heinous offence is alleged to have been committed by the child or when it is committed jointly with an adult. In all other cases, the information need only be recorded in the General Diary followed by a SBR of the child in Form No.1 and the circumstances under which the child was apprehended, wherever applicable. The proviso to Rule 8 of the JJ Model Rules states that the power to apprehend a child can be exercised only when the child is alleged to have committed a heinous offence. In serious and petty offences, information need only be forwarded to the JJB and the hearing date be intimated to the parent or guardian. For the purpose of easier comprehension, Rules 8(1) and 8(7) of the JJ Model Rules are extracted below:
19. On a harmonious reading of the provisions of section 14(4) of JJ Act and Rules 8 and 10 of the JJ Model Rules extracted in the preceding paragraphs, it is evident that no FIR can be registered against a child for the commission of a petty offence. Proceedings for a petty offence against a juvenile are initiated by recording the information relating to the offence in the General Diary. This has to be followed by a Social Background Report of the child to be forwarded to the JJB, and intimation of the hearing date. Since the SBR contemplates various information and materials to be collected, it will require time and utilization of resources of the police. Obviously it will not be possible to be collected when the information about the crime is entered in the General Diary. The date of hearing by the JJB also cannot be provided on the date the intimation is forwarded to the JJB. Thus, SBR need only be submitted along with the final report and only thereafter can the date of hearing be intimated by the JJB. Once information regarding the commission of a petty offence by a juvenile is entered in the General Diary, a juvenile can be said to have committed an offence for the purpose of section 199A of the MV Act.
Issue No. (iv). What is the effect of the decisions in Polachan v. State of Kerala [Crl.M.C No. 7479/2022] and Sameera v. State of Kerala [2023 KHC Online 9217]?
23. In the decision in Polachan V. State of Kerala [Crl.M.C No. 7479/2022], a learned Single Judge of this Court had observed that "in the absence of any charge against the juvenile for the commission of an offence under the Motor Vehicles Act, no offence under section 199A against the guardian of such juvenile would get attracted. The said decision has been followed in Sameera v. State of Kerala [2023 KHC Online 9217] as well as in Khairunnisa v. State of Kerala [2023 SCC Online Ker. 4265]. Although the commission of an offence under the MV Act by the juvenile is an essential ingredient to attract the offence under section 199A of the MV Act, the JJ Act does not contemplate any charge to be framed against a juvenile for petty offences. This aspect was not brought to the notice of the Court in the above decisions. The observation in the above-referred decisions that no offence under section 199A of MV Act would be attracted without a charge against the juvenile was rendered without considering the JJ Act. As per the said statute, an entry in the General Diary indicates the commencement of proceedings against the juvenile and that alone is sufficient to initiate prosecution proceedings against the guardian of the juvenile or owner of the motor vehicle, as the case may be. With utmost respect, it has to be observed that decisions in Polachan (supra), Sameera (supra) and Khairunnisa (supra) have been rendered without taking note of the provisions of the JJ Act and are hence per incuriam.
(iii). Proceedings against the guardian of a juvenile or owner of a motor vehicle under section 199A of the MV Act can be initiated if information regarding the commission of an offence by the juvenile has been recorded in the General Diary. The recording of information in the General Diary has to be followed by the submission of a Social Background Report of the child in Form No.1 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Model Rules, 2016, without undue delay and at any rate, atleast along with the final report.