Alankar Agnihotri said several organisations of the upper-caste community would participate in the stir if the central government fails to withdraw the SC/ST Act by February 6.
Charges under the SC/ST Act have been added to the FIR in the alleged suicide case of Haryana IPS officer Y Puran Kumar following a plea by his wife. The case involves allegations of caste-based discrimination and harassment against senior officers.
A special SC/ST court in Sultanpur has summoned two senior Uttar Pradesh police officers, including a former Additional Superintendent of Police, to face trial for allegedly manipulating the investigation into a Dalit atrocity, assault, and attempted culpable homicide case. The court criticised the "deplorable" investigation process and noted attempts to derail justice by dropping an accused's name.
The bench refused to stay the amendments to the SC/ST Act after senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing for one of the petitioners who had challenged the changes made to the Act, sought an immediate stay on it.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said it will consider and do the needful.
A case was registered against Infosys co-founder Senapathy Kris Gopalakrishnan, former IISc Director Balaram and 16 others under the Prevention of SC/ST Atrocities Act. The case was filed based on the directions of the 71st city civil and session court (CCH). The complainant, Durgappa, who belongs to the tribal Bovi community, alleged that he was falsely implicated in a honey trap case and dismissed from service in 2014. He further claimed he was subjected to casteist abuse and threats.
Amroha Police demolished an alleged illegal construction belonging to an accused in a minor rape case, identified as Farman, as part of their zero-tolerance policy towards crimes against women and girls. The structure was found to be illegal after verification by the revenue department.
The SC clarified that it has not asked for non-registration of an FIR for the offences under the SC/ST Act.
Dealing with the misuse of provisions of SC/ST Act and lodging of false cases, the bench said it was not due to the caste system but due to human failure. The directions passed on provision of arrest and conducting a preliminary probe before any case is lodged is uncalled for and the court should not have exercised its plenary powers, said the bench.
The verdict had led to massive outcry and violent protests by different SC/ST organisations across the country in which several people had died and many injured.
The apex court said it was only safeguarding the interest of innocents from being arrested.
One person has been arrested in Balrampur for allegedly posting objectionable remarks about Dr B R Ambedkar on social media. The arrest followed a complaint by the Bhim Army district president, leading to a case registered under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and IT Act against three individuals. Police are continuing their investigation to apprehend the other accused.
A bench headed by Justice A K Sikri said the pending review petition filed by the Centre against the apex court's March 20, 2018 verdict and the pleas challenging the new amendments made in the SC/ST verdict will be taken up together.
A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra said a preliminary inquiry is not essential before lodging an FIR under the act and the approval of senior police officials is not needed.
An offence under the SC-ST Act is not established merely on the fact that the complainant is a member of a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe community unless there is an intention to humiliate, the Supreme Court said on Friday.
The home minister said eight people were killed -- six in Madhya Pradesh and one each in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, during Monday's Bharat Bandh.
A doctor and hospital staff were allegedly assaulted and medical equipment vandalised at the district hospital in Hamirpur, Uttar Pradesh, leading to the registration of an FIR.
The top court had on May 1 reserved the judgment on the Centre's review plea while observing that laws in the country should be caste neutral and uniform.
A doctor in Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh, has been booked for allegedly raping a Dalit woman employee on the pretext of marriage and forcing her to undergo an abortion. The case, which involves allegations of religious conversion pressure and dissatisfaction with initial police action, is currently under investigation.
The Supreme Court has ruled that mere swear words, profanities, and vulgar expletives, however offensive, do not amount to obscenity under Section 294 of the Indian Penal Code. The court clarified that for an utterance to be considered obscene, it must be lascivious, appeal to prurient interests, and have the tendency to deprave and corrupt minds. This ruling came while hearing a plea challenging a high court order confirming a conviction under IPC Section 294.
The Supreme Court has quashed charges of caste-based violence against Anand Rai, a whistleblower in the Madhya Pradesh VYAPAM examination scam, overturning a high court order.
It also provides that no preliminary enquiry will be required for registering a criminal case and an arrest under this law would not be subject to any approval.
Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan had reportedly taken steps to implement the order, they have now decided to put its execution in abeyance.
"Unfortunately, one comes across growing instances of cases where the provisions of this Act have not so much been invoked for the betterment of those to whom it seeks to protect, than by those who want to settle personal scores by giving to an otherwise ordinary dispute, the colour of an alleged atrocity under the Act," Additional Sessions Judge Kamini Lau said.
A man in Mumbai has been booked for allegedly abusing Babasaheb Ambedkar during a fight in the Dharavi area, leading to charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
A Class 10 Dalit student in Madhya Pradesh's Niwari district committed suicide after allegedly being pressured by a man against whom she had filed a harassment complaint.
Dalit organisations in Kerala are demanding compensation and a High Court-monitored probe into the death of a BDS student, alleging 'institutional murder' and caste-based harassment.
An undertrial accused of rape and offenses under the SC/ST Act escaped police custody during a court appearance in Maharajganj, Uttar Pradesh. A case has been registered against two policemen for alleged negligence, and a separate case has been lodged against the absconding accused.
The Supreme Court has criticised RTI activism, calling it a "new business," while denying anticipatory bail to an activist accused of obstructing road construction work and intimidating public servants in Punjab.
A court in Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh, has sentenced five individuals to life imprisonment for the murder of a Dalit man in 2001. The verdict was delivered after the court found the accused guilty based on presented evidence.
Youth League activists clashed with police during a protest march at a dental college in Kerala over the death of a Dalit student. The protest was triggered by allegations of harassment and demands for action against faculty members.
An 18-year-old Dalit youth was allegedly beaten to death and his friend severely injured in Uttarakhand's Pratapnagar block over his friendship with a minor girl from an upper caste community. Police have registered a murder case and invoked the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, detaining one accused.
The family of a BDS student who died after falling from a building at Kannur Dental College in Kerala, in a suspected suicide, met with the City Police Commissioner seeking swift action against those accused of abetment.
Sources say promulgating an ordinance to restore the original provisions would help calm tempers.
Noida Police have suspended two officers for failing to include key legal provisions in a rape case FIR, including those related to unlawful religious conversion and the SC/ST Act.
The Supreme Court of India has strongly criticised comedian Samay Raina and YouTubers Ranveer Allahbadia and Ashish Chanchlani for failing to comply with its previous order regarding disability awareness. The court expressed dismay over Raina's non-compliance and his alleged insensitive remarks about persons with disabilities, urging the Centre to consider a stringent law against such derogatory comments.
An 18-year-old Dalit youth, Ketan Lal, was allegedly beaten to death and his friend injured by the family of a minor upper-caste girl in Uttarakhand's Pratapnagar block. The incident occurred after the girl called Ketan to her village, leading to their assault. Police have registered a murder case and invoked the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, detaining one accused.
The government also said the 'confusion' created by the apex court verdict may have to be corrected by reviewing the judgment and recalling the directions issued by it.
A 48-year-old man has been arrested in Karkala, Karnataka, for allegedly posting derogatory casteist comments and issuing a death threat against Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge on social media. The accused was taken into custody after a complaint detailed abusive remarks made on a Facebook post.
The Supreme Court of India has ruled that individuals converting from Hinduism, Sikhism, or Buddhism cannot retain Scheduled Caste status, reinforcing existing constitutional provisions.
