One of the accused in Mumbai gangrape case was a minor: Mumbai Police

Mumbai : The Mumbai Police on Friday sent one of the arrested accused in the Shakti Mill compound gangrape case to remand home in Dongri, accepting documents collected during investigation seemed to indicate he was a minor.

All five arrested accused on Thursday had undergone bone ossification test to determine their exact age. “As per the documents collected during investigation he is a minor and being treated such. If further medical examination results reveal otherwise, he would be treated as an adult,” said a senior officer from Mumbai Crime Branch.

The remand copy presented in a local court here said that the mother of an accused had claimed that the accused is a minor and presented certain documents during the investigation. “The documents presented by her will be certified and will be presented before the juvenile justice board, where final decision on his age will be taken,” said the remand copy.

“His family had been claiming from start he was a minor. Since now he has been sent to remand home, he should be treated under respective law,” said Advocate Flavia Agnes, Co-founder, Majlis, a resource centre on women’s issues. According to Ms. Agnes, juveniles committing such a crime are a part of bigger social problem. “This accused was supposed to be in a school, but he is a dropout. We need to focus on these issues to tackle the problem,” she said.

Meanwhile, the police custody of three other accused in the case Siraj Khan, Vijay Jadhav and Quasim Bangali was extended up to September 5. Quasim’s lawyer too made an application claiming he was a minor. The court rejected his plea on grounds that he was treated as major in a 2012 case, when he was tried in Girgaum court. Court observed that Quasim’s physical appearance does not suggest that he was a minor. The police have also added two more IPC sections in case – section 377 (offence relating unnatural sex) and section 120 b (criminal conspiracy).