Juvenility on date of offence controls pending appeals; conviction may stand, but sentence must be set aside under juvenile law.

Juvenility in pending criminal proceedings is determined by the offender's age on the date of the offence, and the claim may be raised even after conviction on appeal. Where the inquiry showed the appellant was 16 years and 7 months old at the time of occurrence, the statutory benefit under the juvenile justice framework applied despite the later enactment of 2015. The conviction was maintained, but the sentence of life imprisonment was set aside and the matter remitted to the Juvenile Justice Board for orders under the applicable juvenile law.

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Issues: Whether the appellant, who was below 18 years on the date of the offence, was entitled to be treated as a juvenile in a pending appeal and to have the sentence of life imprisonment set aside while the conviction was maintained.

Analysis: The relevant provisions in the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 and the subsequent amendments make juvenility dependent on age on the date of commission of the offence. The special provisions for pending cases permit the question of juvenility to be raised at any stage, including after conviction and during appeal, and require the court to determine juvenility in terms of Section 2(l) even if the person has since crossed the age threshold. The later enactment of 2015 preserves pending proceedings and does not displace the benefit already available under the 2000 Act. Once the inquiry established that the appellant was 16 years and 7 months old on the date of occurrence, the statutory benefit followed. In such a case, conviction may stand, but the sentence cannot; the matter must be forwarded to the Juvenile Justice Board for appropriate orders under the juvenile law framework.

Conclusion: The appellant was entitled to be treated as a juvenile and the sentence of life imprisonment was liable to be set aside. The matter was required to be remitted to the Juvenile Justice Board for orders under the 2000 Act.

Final Conclusion: The appeal succeeded only to the extent of juvenility and sentence, while the conviction was maintained and further proceedings were directed before the Board.

Ratio Decidendi: In pending criminal proceedings, juvenility is determined by the age on the date of the offence, and a person found to have been below 18 years at that time is entitled to the protection of the juvenile law even if that claim is raised after conviction; the sentence must then be set aside and the matter dealt with under the juvenile justice regime.

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