Provisions of SC/ST Atricities act,
The Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted to prevent atrocities against scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. The Act is popularly known as POA, the SC/ST Act, the Prevention of Atrocities Act, or simply the Atrocities Act.
Article 17 of Indian Constitution seeks to abolish ‘untouchability’ and to forbid all such practices. It is basically a “statement of principle” that needs to be made operational with the ostensible objective to remove humiliation and multifaceted harassments meted to the Dalits and to ensure their fundamental and socio-economic, political, and cultural rights.
Objectives of the act
The basic objective and purpose of this more comprehensive and more punitive piece of legislation was sharply enunciated when the Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha:
“Despite various measures to improve the socio-economic conditions of the SCs and STs, they remain vulnerable… They have, in several brutal incidents, been deprived of their life and property… Because of the awareness created… through spread of education, etc., when they assert their rights and resist practices of untouchability against them or demand statutory minimum wages or refuse to do any bonded and forced labour, the vested interests try to cow them down and terrorise them. When the SCs and STs try to preserve their self-respect or honour of their women, they become irritants for the dominant and the mighty… Under the circumstances, the existing laws like the Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955 and the normal provisions of the Indian Penal Code have been found to be inadequate to check and deter crimes against them committed by non-SCs and non-STs… It is considered necessary that not only the term ‘atrocity’ should be defined, but also stringent measures should be introduced to provide for higher punishment for committing such atrocities. It is also proposed to enjoin on the States and Union Territories to take specific preventive and punitive measures to protect SCs and STs from being victimized and, where atrocities are committed, to provide adequate relief and assistance to rehabilitate them”.
The objectives of the Act, therefore, very clearly emphasise the intention of the Indian state to deliver justice to SC/ST communities through affirmative action in order to enable them to live in society with dignity and self-esteem and without fear, violence or suppression from the dominant castes.
The salient features of the Act are:
- Creation of new types of offences not in the Indian Penal Code (IPC) or in the Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955 (PCRA).
- Commission of offences only by specified persons (atrocities can be committed only by non-SCs and non-STs on members of the SC or ST communities. Crimes among SCs and STs or between STs and SCs do not come under the purview of this Act).
- Defines various types of atrocities against SCs/STs.
- Prescribes stringent punishment for such atrocities.
- Enhanced punishment for some offences.
- Enhanced minimum punishment for public servants.
- Punishment for neglect of duties by a public servant.
- Attachment and forfeiture of property.
- Externment of potential offenders.
- Creation of Special Courts.
- Appointment of Special Public Prosecutors.
- Empowers the government to impose collective fines
- Cancellation of arms licences in the areas identified where an atrocity may take place or has taken place (Rule 3iii) and seize all illegal fire arms (Rule 3iv).
- Grant arms licences to SCs and STs.
- Atrocity is “an expression commonly used to refer to crimes against Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) in India”.
- It “denotes the quality of being shockingly cruel and inhumane, whereas the term ‘crime’ relates to an act punishable by law”.
- It implies “any offence under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) committed against SCs by non-SC persons, or against STs by non-ST persons. Caste consideration as a motive is not necessary to make such an offence in case of atrocity”.
- It signifies “crimes which have ingredients of infliction of suffering in one form or the other that should be included for reporting”. This is based on the assumption that “where the victims of crime are members of Scheduled Castes and the offenders do not belong to Scheduled Castes caste considerations are really the root cause of the crime, even though caste considerations may not be the vivid and minimum motive for the crime”.
The Act lists 22 offences relating to various patterns of behaviours inflicting criminal offences for shattering the self-respect and esteem of SCs and STs, denial of economic, democratic and social rights, discrimination, exploitation and abuse of the legal process, etc.
Section 3 of the Act lists the criminal offences and the punishments. It contains:
- 19 offences in their own right (Section 3(1) contains 15 subsections with an equal number of offences. Section 3(2) contains four subsections with offences).
- two derived offences (sections 3(2)(vi) and 3(2)(vii)). The derived offences are based on the offences given in the SC/ST Act. They only come in the picture provided that another offence under the SC/ST Act has been committed.
- one subsection that increases the punishment for certain offences under the IPC (Section 3(2)(v)).
These protections can be broadly divided into protection from:
- social disabilities (denial of access to certain places and to use customary passage and to get water from any spring, reservoir or any other source).
- personal atrocities (forceful drinking or eating of inedible or obnoxious substance, against stripping, outrage of modesty, sexual exploitation, injury or annoyance). atrocities affecting properties (land, residential premises, existing properties).
- malicious prosecution.
- political disabilities. economic exploitation
Sheria ya SC & ST (Uzuiaji wa Uhalifu) ya 1989 ni sheria ya Bunge la India iliyopitishwa ili kuzuia uovu dhidi ya jamii zilizopangwa na makabila yaliyopangwa. Sheria hiyo inajulikana kama POA, Sheria ya SC, Sheria ya Kuzuia Uovu, au tu Sheria ya Uovu. "Kifungu cha 17 cha Katiba ya India kinataka kuondoa ""kutoguswa"" na kupiga marufuku mazoea yote kama hayo." "Hii ni ""matangazo ya kanuni"" ambayo yanahitaji kutekelezwa kwa lengo la kuondoa unyanyasaji na unyanyasaji wa pande nyingi unaowakabili Dalits na kuhakikisha haki zao za msingi na za kijamii, kiuchumi, kisiasa na kitamaduni." "Lengo la msingi na lengo la sheria hii ya jumla na ya adhabu zaidi ilitangazwa kwa nguvu wakati Muswada huo ulipowasilishwa katika Lok Sabha: ""Licha ya hatua mbalimbali za kuboresha hali ya kijamii na kiuchumi ya SC na ST, bado wanakabiliwa na hatari... Wamepoteza maisha na mali zao katika matukio kadhaa ya kikatili... Kwa sababu ya ufahamu ulioundwa kupitia kuenea kwa elimu, na kadhalika, wakati wanadai haki zao na mazoea ya kutoweza kuguswa dhidi yao au kukataa kufanya kazi yoyote ya kulazimishwa." "Wakati SC na ST wanajaribu kuhifadhi heshima yao au heshima ya wanawake wao, wanakuwa wenye kukasirisha kwa wenye nguvu na wenye nguvu, chini ya hali zilizopo, sheria zilizopo kama vile Sheria ya Ulinzi wa Haki za Kiraia ya 1955 na masharti ya kawaida ya Sheria ya Adhabu ya India zimegunduliwa kuwa hazitoshi kuzuia na kuzuia uhalifu dhidi yao unaofanywa na wasio SC na wasio ST, ""aliongeza." Pia inapendekezwa kuagiza majimbo na maeneo ya Umoja kuchukua hatua maalum za kuzuia na adhabu ili kulinda SCs na STs kutoka kwa kuteswa na, ambapo ukatili umefanywa, kutoa misaada ya kutosha na msaada wa kuwarudisha. "Kwa hivyo, malengo ya Sheria ya India yanasisitiza wazi nia ya serikali ya India kutoa haki kwa jamii za SC na ST kupitia hatua za uthibitisho ili kuwawezesha kuishi katika jamii kwa heshima na kujithamini na bila hofu, vurugu au ukandamizaji kutoka kwa jamii zinazodhibiti.""" Sheria hiyo inaonyesha kuwa sheria hiyo inazingatia sheria mpya za uhalifu ambazo hazikuwepo katika Sheria ya Uhalifu ya India (IPC) au Sheria ya Ulinzi wa Haki za Kiraia ya 1955. - Utendaji wa makosa tu na watu maalum (atrocities inaweza kutekelezwa tu na wasio SCs na wasio STs juu ya wanachama wa SC au ST jamii. Uhalifu kati ya SCs na STs au kati ya STs na SCs haujumuishiwi chini ya mamlaka ya Sheria hii). -Hutufafanua aina mbalimbali za ukatili dhidi ya SCs / STs. - Inatoa adhabu kali kwa ajili ya ukatili kama huo. - Adhabu iliyoimarishwa kwa makosa fulani. - Kuongeza adhabu ya chini kwa watumishi wa umma. - Adhabu kwa ajili ya uzembe wa majukumu na mtumishi wa umma. - Kukamata na kutekwa mali. - Kuua wahalifu wanaoweza kuwa wahalifu. - Uundaji wa Mahakama Maalum. - Uteuzi wa Waendesha Mashtaka wa Umma Maalum. - Hutoa mamlaka kwa serikali ya kuweka faini za pamoja - Kufuta leseni za silaha katika maeneo yaliyotajwa ambapo ukatili unaweza kutokea au umetokea (Sheria 3iii) na kukamata silaha zote haramu (Sheria 3iv). - Kutoa leseni za silaha kwa SCs na STs. - Uhalifu ni "maonyesho ya kawaida kutumika kurejelea uhalifu dhidi ya Scheduled Castes (SCs) na Scheduled Tribes (STs) katika India". - <unk>inaonyesha ubora wa kuwa mkali sana na usio wa kibinadamu, wakati neno <unk>uhalifu<unk> linahusiana na kitendo kinachopigwa marufuku na sheria<unk>. - Inamaanisha "uhalifu wowote chini ya Sheria ya Adhabu ya India (IPC) uliofanywa dhidi ya SCs na watu wasio wa SC, au dhidi ya STs na watu wasio wa ST. Uangalifu wa jamii kama nia si muhimu kufanya kosa kama hilo katika kesi ya ukatili. - Inaashiria <unk>uhalifu ambao una viungo vya kusababisha mateso katika fomu moja au nyingine ambayo inapaswa kujumuishwa kwa ripoti<unk>. Hii inategemea dhana kwamba "ambapo waathirika wa uhalifu ni wanachama wa Scheduled Castes na wahalifu si wa Scheduled Castes kuzingatia jamii ni kweli sababu ya msingi ya uhalifu, hata kama kuzingatia jamii inaweza kuwa si vivid na kiwango cha chini cha nia ya uhalifu". Sheria hiyo inaorodhesha makosa 22 yanayohusiana na mifumo mbalimbali ya tabia zinazosababisha uhalifu kwa kuvunja heshima na kujithamini kwa SCs na STs, kukataa haki za kiuchumi, kidemokrasia na kijamii, ubaguzi, unyonyaji na matumizi mabaya ya mchakato wa kisheria, nk. Sehemu ya 3 ya Sheria hiyo inaorodhesha makosa ya jinai na adhabu. "Hii ni pamoja na: (1) ""Mashtaka ya Uhalifu"" (Section 3 (1)), na (2) ""Mashtaka ya Uhalifu"" (Section 3 (1)), na (3) ""Mashtaka ya Uhalifu"" (Section 3 (1))." Sehemu ya 3 (2) ina vifungu vinne na makosa. - makosa mawili yanayotokana (section 3 (2) (vi) na 3 (2) (vii)). Uhalifu unaotokana na huo unategemea uhalifu uliotolewa katika Sheria ya SC/ST. Wao tu kuja katika picha kwa masharti kwamba kosa jingine chini ya SC / ST Sheria imekuwa kutekelezwa. - kifungu kimoja ambacho kinaongeza adhabu kwa makosa fulani chini ya IPC (Section 3 (2) (v)). Hifadhi hizi zinaweza kugawanywa kwa ujumla katika ulinzi dhidi ya: - ulemavu wa kijamii (kukataa kuingia katika maeneo fulani na kutumia njia ya kawaida na kupata maji kutoka kwa chemchemi yoyote, hifadhi au chanzo kingine chochote). - ukatili wa kibinafsi (ku kunywa kwa nguvu au kula dutu isiyoweza kuliwa au yenye kuchukiza, dhidi ya kuondoa nguo, ukatili wa kiasi, unyonyaji wa kingono, jeraha au uchungu). Uhalifu unaohusu mali (nchi, majengo ya makazi, mali zilizopo). - mashtaka ya uovu. - ulemavu wa kisiasa. uchimbaji wa kiuchumi