- (1.) ACCUSED petitioner Kalyan has filed this bail application under Section 439, Cr. P. C. in FIR 11/81, in which he has been arrested, and charged with offence under Section 376, I. P. C. The prosecution case is that accused committed rape with a girl Mst. Ram Pyari who happens to be 14 years of her age. The girl received injuries and became unconscious. 'ghaghari' and underwear of the girl were found bloodstained.
(2.) DURING the course of investigation, a bail application was moved before the Sessions Judge, Kota, who has rejected it on February 6, 1981.
(3.) SHRI Ravi Kasliwal, the learned Counsel for the accused-petitioner submitted that the accused is a boy of 16 years of age and is, therefore, entitled to bail under Section 18 of the Rajasthan Children Act, 1970, hereinafter referred to as 'the Act of 1970'. Section 18 of the Act of 1970 reads as under: 18. Bail and custody of Children (1) When any person accused of a bailable or non-bailable offence and apparently a child is arrested or detained or appears or is brought before a children's Court, such person shall, notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 (Central Act 5 of 1898) or in any other law for the time being in force, be released on bail with or without surety but he shall not be so released if there appears reasonable grounds for believing that the release is likely to bring him into association with any notorious criminal or expose him to moral danger or that his release would defeat the ends of justice. (2) when such person having been arrested is not released on bail under subsection (1) by the officerincharge of the police station, such officer shall cause him to be kept in an observation home in the prescribed manner (but not in a police station or jail) until he can be brought before a Children's Court. (3) when such person is not released on bail under Sub-section (1) by the Children's Court, it shall instead of committing him to prison, make an order sending him to an observation home for such period during the pendency of the inquiry, regarding him as may be specified in the order. ;