Passage 1. If an offence has no minimum prescribed punishment, it cannot be considered heinous as per the JJ Act, 2015.

Question

Passage:

The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, or the JJ Act, 2015 allows for the possibility for trying adolescents above 16 as adults if they are accused of committing a heinous offence. A heinous offence is one with a minimum punishment of seven years. Offences such as culpable homicide and causing death by negligence, which are common in drunken driving cases, are not heinous offences because they do not have a prescribed minimum punishment. The JJ Act, amended in 2021, now categorises an offence that has no minimum sentence, but has a maximum sentence of seven years or more as a serious offence which nonetheless, in the opinion of activists, does not merit the transfer of a case to the adult criminal justice system.

Which of the following statements is/are correct?

1. If an offence has no minimum prescribed punishment, it cannot be considered heinous as per the JJ Act, 2015.

2. As per the JJ Act, 2021, an offence for which there is a provision for a maximum sentence of seven years or more, but no minimum sentence, is to be considered a serious offence.

Select the answer using the code given below.

1. A. 1 only
2. B. 2 only
3. C. Both 1 and 2 (Correct answer)
4. D. Neither 1 nor 2

Correct Answer

Option C — Both 1 and 2

Detailed Solution & Explanation

The correct answer is Option C.

Key Points

• Both statements 1 and 2 are correct.
• 1 — under the JJ Act, 2015, an offence with no minimum prescribed punishment cannot be treated as heinous (heinous needs a minimum of seven years).
• 2 — under the 2021 amendment, an offence with a maximum of seven years or more but no minimum is a serious offence.

Additional Information

• Both are lifted directly from the passage's definitions, so the answer is Both 1 and 2 → Option C.