Jaspal Singh ( 1 ) WHAT should the Court do when the accused claims tobe a Juvenile and the other side challenges the same? This, in short, is the question. Now, the facts. ( 2 ) MANOJ Kumar is accused of having committed offences under Sections 302,307,120-B read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code. He moved an applicationthat he being below sixteen years of age at the time of the alleged commission ofoffence, the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act, 1986 were attracted. The learnedtrial Judge looked into the application and so also at the petitioner and rejected theprayer holding that he appeared to be above the prescribed age. Thus the fate of theapplication was sealed by what was a mere visual examination. ( 3 ) SHOULD a Judge, in a matter like this straighten his stooping shoulders, lifthis head hurried otherwise deep into the mouth-eaten files, adjust his heavy framedlooking glasses and peeping through them with his tired eyes adjudge, andproclaim the age of an accused? ( 4 ) THERE are some on which long years sit lightly while some may wither awayin their prime with faces blue and bleak with such strain and ache "as each yearmight assign" Thomas Hardy: "he Never Expected Much". making them look "oldand grey and full of sleep. " Y. B. Yeats: "when You Are Old" Yes, appearances canbe deceptive. They quite often are. And ajudge is neither a Prophet nor competentto squeeze the universe into a ball and see the unseen. He is not even Lazarus ofbethany competent enough to proclaim: "i am Lazarus, come from the dead,come back to tell you all, I shalltell you all" T. S. Eliot: "the Low Song Of J. Alfred Prufrock"if that be so, one may ask, what should he do? The answer is simple. Sincehe is ill-equipped, let him collect all the tools. Let him hold an enquiry - a regularone, not an eye-wash, record evidence and then use the tools of his long judicialexperience and adjudicate. This would be the right track, for, it was paved by thefootprints of the Supreme Court: "we are of the opinion that whenever a case is brought before the Magistrateand the accused appears to be aged 21 years or below, before proceeding withthe trial or undertaking an inquiry, an inquiry must be made about the age ofthe accused on the date of the occurrence. This ought to be more so wherespecial Acts dealing with juvenile delinquent are in force. If necessary, themagistrate may refer the accused to the Medical Board or the civil Surgeon,as the case may be, for obtaining credit-worthy evidence about age. Themagistrate may as well call upon accused also to lead evidence about his age. Thereafter, the learned Magistrate may proceed in accordance with law. "[gopinath Ghosh v. State of West Bengal 1984 Crl. L. J. 168 at p. 172]let the trial Judge follow it and I am confident it shall never again cheat himwith the mirage of visual satisfaction. [with apology to George Barker: "turn onyour Side and Bear the Day To Me" wherein the exact words are: "shall never again cheat you withthe mirageof sensual satisfaction". ]