Delhi gang-rape: 'Nirbhaya's juvenile rapist must be released'

New Delhi: Extending his support for the juvenile convict in the December 16 gangrape case, Lawyer AP Singh accused the non-governmental organisations of not doing anything for the various poor kids like the juvenile convict.

According to Singh, the Juvenile Justice Board gave the decision based on the facts and highlighted that according to the Juvenile Justice Act there cannot be more than three years of punishment for any convict.

He also added that if the convict was a rich boy, he would have been released much before three years` time.

"There are many children like him who beg on the road. What are the different organizations doing for them? There is no one to hear these poor children," he added.He also expressed his plan to meet President Pranab Mukherjee in this regard and reiterated that the juvenile must be released on the completion of his three year sentence.

The convict, who is now 20 years old and was known to be the most brutal of the attackers, has been taken to an undisclosed location from a correction home in North Delhi amid concerns that there was a threat to his life. He is scheduled to be released today.Earlier, the parents of the gang rape victim, along students and activists were detained by the police as they staged a protest against the release of the juvenile convict. The police action was condemned by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

In December 2012, the teenager was part of the six member gang that lured a 23-year-old trainee physiotherapist and her male friend onto a bus, where the girl was gruesomely raped and her companion brutally beaten. The girl subsequently succumbed to her injuries 13 days later in Singapore.The incident caused nationwide outrage and led to widespread outpouring of anger against the rapists, including the teenager.