Juvenile's popularity as bus helper belies his demonic avatar

A broken home with no figure of authority to reign him in and a 'culture shock' sustained at the threshold of his bohemian existence in big cities apparently the juvenile, one of the six accused in the gangrape case, made him a part of the ghastliest case of sexual assault ever reported from Delhi.

A broken home with no figure of authority to reign him in and a 'culture shock' sustained at the threshold of his bohemian existence in big cities apparently the juvenile, one of the six accused in the gangrape case, made him a part of the ghastliest case of sexual assault ever reported from Delhi.

HT Image

Nabbed from Anand Vihar ISBT on Friday morning and two months shy of officially attaining his 'manhood', the juvenile accused and his peculiar blend of popular Bollywood tunes and melodic whistling made him a sought-after 'helper' among most of his employers, a senior investigator said.

"The way he solicited potential fares was his gift and helped him get jobs easily," said an officer about the minor whose seemingly ephemeral identity forced them to scour three states in his search.

"On the fateful evening, it was him who had solicited the victim and her friend. It was purely a matter of chance - the fact that they were headed to Uttam Nagar - and the juvenile was touting Dwarka as the bus' destination."

Later, as was reported by Hindustan Times on December 20, the juvenile would meet the other five with whom he would later indulge in the brutal crime hours later for the very first time, on the night of December 16.

"Singh owed the juvenile around R8,000 - a sum which had remained unpaid over at least four years. Last Sunday, he decided to go to Singh's house where he was first asked to partake in drinking before Singh, in a bid to repay the juvenile's loan in addition to being able to procure more alcohol, had decided to misuse the bus and rob fares," the officer added.