The Top Court on Wednesday once again refused to put a stay on implementation of SC/ST Act. Supreme Court also posted for Feb 19 for the final hearing of pleas challenging SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2018 that rule out any provision for anticipatory bail for a person accused of atrocities against SC/STs & review plea against the March 20 judgement.
Supreme Court also refuses to stay implementation of amendment in SC/ST Act. https://t.co/4IujIt6ml8
— ANI (@ANI) January 30, 2019
The bench headed by Justice UU Lalit said it will be appropriate if all matters are heard on February.
The Top Court bench headed by CJI Ranjan Gogoi had on January 25 had said that it will consider listing the Centre’s review and petitions challenging the amendments to the SC/ ST Act 2018, together before an appropriate bench.
Earlier, on January 24, The Top Court had refused to stay Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2018 that rule out any provision for anticipatory bail for a person accused of atrocities against SC/STs.
On March 20 last year, Supreme Court taking strong cognizance of “misuse” that the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 is being subjected to, a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court passed a slew of stringent directions intended to be followed in the enforcement of this law. It had also introduced anticipatory bail provision under the Act.
The bench, comprising of Justices U.U. Lalit and A.K. Goel, said this three-decade-old law, which aims to protect members of the SC/ST community from social atrocities, is being widely “abused” by vested interests against political opponents in panchayat, municipal or other elections, to settle private civil disputes arising out of property, monetary disputes, employment disputes and seniority disputes.
However, the Centre had made amendments in the Act to overcome the top court’s order diluting the provision of arrest under the law. The amendments provide that no preliminary inquiry would be required for registering a criminal case and an arrest under this law would not be subject to any approval.