The Allahabad High Court stated that since social background or social investigation reports are typically generated without conducting adequate research, they cannot be heavily relied upon while rejecting or granting bail to a child under the Juvenile Justice Act.
In the instant case titled Minor Son Of Moolchand Through His Natural Guardian Grandfather Ved Prakash v. the State Of U.P. And Another, the issue raised before the Allahabad High Court was:
Whether a report from the District Probation Officer taken as a ground for dismissal of bail application?
With regard to the issue, the Court noted that while determining whether a child is eligible for bail under the last three entitlement categories, the seriousness and heinousness of the offence become significant. The juvenile was the one who arrived prepared and armed with a country-made pistol, and even though he was with his brother, it was he who opened fire on Nitin (deceased), according to the court. The fact that he took the gun from his own home before committing the crime, as highlighted by the court, suggests that this incident was planned rather than carried out on the spur of the moment.
The juvenile shall not be so released if there are reasonable grounds to believe that doing so (i) will put him in contact with known criminals, (ii) will put him in danger of moral, bodily, or physiological harm, or (iii) will frustrate the goals of justice.
Investigating the offender's past or the causes and circumstances, as disclosed by the social investigation report, that got him to this point or put him in such a pickle may not serve any constructive purpose. In this regard, the Court further highlighted that it must rely on its own judicial judgement and impartial evaluation of the situation while adhering scrupulously to the law's bail provisions and bearing in mind that the Act has an integrated approach to both retributive and reformatory justice.
The court categorically stated that:
“A social background or a social investigation report may have a very limited purpose to serve. The findings cannot be solely based on such reports, which are more than often very superficial and unscientific. It is a common knowledge that social investigation reports are usually prepared on printed formats without proper research. In my opinion, not much reliance can be placed on such half baked reports. The Court may have to depend on its own judicial discretion and objective assessment of the things while still going strictly according to the provision of law as to bail and also keeping in mind that the Act has intertwined approach reformatory as well as retributive. The judge has to strike a precarious balance between interest of the child and interest of the victim and also the society at large."
Hence, the bail was denied to the juvenile in question.