In Brief
In this writ petition under Article 32, the petitioner challenged the President of India's rejection of his mercy petition, raising the contention that he was a juvenile at the time of the incident. The Supreme Court held that judicial review of a rejected mercy petition is ordinarily not available. Since the plea of juvenility had been previously considered and dismissed by the Juvenile Justice Board and the Additional Sessions Judge as not maintainable, it could not be reopened. The Court emphasized that the President's exercise of clemency power deserves constitutional presumption of careful consideration and open-minded review. The petition was dismissed.
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