Pradyuman murder: Juvenile Board rules 16-yr-old to be tried as adult

Gurgaon: Class 11 student accused in Pradyuman murder will be tried as an adult, the Juvenile Justice Board ruled on Wednesday.

The lawyer of Pradyuman Thakur's family said that the convict will be considered as an adult during subsequent proceedings.

Juvenile Justice Board has transferred the case to District And Sessions Court. Hearing will begin from December 22.

Thanking the judiciary for the decision, Pradyuman's father Varun Thakur said, "We always knew that the journey is long but we will go till the end to get justice for my child and all other children who might be vulnerable". 

Pradyuman was found in a pool of blood with his throat slit inside the toilet of Gurgaon's Ryan International School on September 8. 

In a sensational twist to the case, the CBI on November 8 apprehended a senior student of the school in connection with the murder of Pradyuman rejecting the Gurgaon police's theory that the killing was the handiwork of school bus conductor Ashok Kumar.

According to the agency, the Class 11 student, believed to be weak in his studies, allegedly slit Pradyuman's throat to get the school to declare a holiday in order to defer a scheduled parent-teacher meeting (PTM) and an examination.

Earlier in November, Pradyuman's family had demanded strict punishment for the accused student and wanted him to be tried as an adult and hanged.

Following the initial investigation, the police had arrested a school bus conductor, Ashok Kumar, for the child’s murder.

(With inputs from PTI)