In connection with the probe against two Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) members for their order to release the juvenile accused in the Pune Porsche crash case on bail with lenient terms, government officials on Thursday (October 8) informed of the termination of the services of the two members, identified as L N Danwade and Kavita Thorat, over 'procedural lapses.'
According to the information released, the stringent action by state authorities comes after a committee led by the WCD Department (which was probing the conduct of the two members regarding the bail granted to the minor accused) cited "procedural lapses" by the members.
"I had given the probe panel report to the state government and recommended that the appointment of the two members be terminated," WCD Department Commissioner Prashant Narnavare told the media.
"The report recommending the termination was sent to the state government in July. The state government on Tuesday terminated the appointment of both members as they were found guilty of misusing their powers, which were provided under the Juvenile Justice Act," he added.
Notably, the Pune Porsche case pertains to a May 19 incident, when two IT professionals were killed in the Kalyani Nagar area of Pune after their motorcycle was hit by a speeding Porsche, allegedly driven by a 17-year-old boy under the influence of alcohol.
The case sparked national outrage after a JJB member granted bail to the accused, who comes from a prominent family, on lenient terms, including writing a 300-word essay on road safety, despite the seriousness of the offence.
A committee was subsequently formed by the WCD Department to investigate the two JJB members' decision to grant bail. And, following the investigation, the committee recommended action against the members for procedural lapses.
(With inputs from PTI)
