SC/ST Commission to Meet President Kovind Over Apex Court’s Rule

The SC, on 20 March, ruled against arbitrary arrest of public servants, private employees under SC/ST(PoA) Act.

File photo of the Supreme Court of India. 

(Photo: Reuters)

In view of the demand to review the Supreme Court’s order from 20 March, a delegation of SC/ST Commission is set to meet the President Ramnath Kovind on Wednesday at 5.30 pm. Reports suggest that Congress President Rahul Gandhi might join the delegation.

The Supreme Court on 20 March said that the arrest of an accused under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,1989, is not mandatory and recourse to coercive action would be only after preliminary inquiry and sanction by the competent authority.

Coupled with this, the court said that there was no "absolute bar against grant of anticipatory bail in cases under the Atrocities Act if no prima facie case is made out or where on judicial scrutiny the complaint is found to be prima facie mala fide".

“... We direct that in absence of any other independent offence calling for arrest, in respect of offences under the Atrocities Act, no arrest may be effected” without the permission of appointing authority in case of public servant or that of Senior Superintendent of Police in case of general public, said the bench of Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel and Justice Uday Umesh Lalit in its judgment.

The bench said it provided for the safeguard "in view of acknowledged abuse of law of arrest" under the Act.

Political parties have been protesting against the dilution of the PoA Act.

The Congress' Mumbai unit on 27 March attacked the Narendra Modi-led Central government for remaining a silent spectator over the dilution of the SC/ST Atrocities Act, saying it was "displaying its upper caste arrogance".

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) also urged the government to immediately file a review petition against the "retrograde judgment".

(With IANS inputs)