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The Scheduled Castes And The Scheduled Tribes

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The SC And The ST(Prevention Of Atrocities) Act, 1989.


ACT No. 33 of 1989

An Act to prevent the commission of offences of atrocities against the members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, to provide for Special Courts for the trial of such offences and for the relief and rehabilitation of the victims of such offences and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

BE it enacted by Parliament in the Fourtieth Year of the Republic of India as follows: -

CHAPTER--I


1.1.Short title, extent and commencement----

(i) This Act may be called the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

(ii) It extends to the whole of India except the State of Jammu & Kashmir.

(iii) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official

Gasette, appoint.

2. Definitions---

(I) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,--

(a) “Atrocity” means an offence punishable under section 3;

(b) “Code” means the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974);

1.(c) “Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes” shall have the meaning assigned to them respectively under clause

(24) and clause (25) of article 366 of the Constitution;

(d) “Special Court” means a Court of Session specified as a Special Court in section 14;

(e)“Special Public Prosecutor” means a Public Prosecutor specified as a Special Public Prosecutor or an advocate referred to in section 15;

(f) Words and expressions used but not defined in this Act and defined in the Code or the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) shall have the meanings assigned to them respectively in the Code, or as the case may be, in the Indian Penal Code.

2.Any reference in this Act to any enactment or any provision thereof shall, in relation to an area in which such enactment or such provision is not in force, be construed as a reference to the corresponding law, if any, if force in that area.

CHAPTER-II

OFFENCE OF ATROCITIES


1.2.Punishments for offence of atrocities, ---

Whoever, not being a member of a Scheduled Castes or a Scheduled Tribes, ---

(i) Forces a member of a Scheduled Castes or a Scheduled Tribes to drink or eat any inedible or obnoxious substance;

(ii)Acts with intent to cause injury, insult or annoyance to any member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe by dumping excreta, waste matter, carcasses or any other obnoxious substance in his premies or neighbourholld;

(iii)Forcibly removes clothes from the person of a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe or parades him naked or with painted face or body or commits any similar act which is derogatory to human dignity; (iv) Wrongfully occupies or cultivates any land owned by, or allotted to, or notified by any competent authority to be allotted to, a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe or gets the land allotted to him transferred;

(v)Wrongfully dispossesses a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe from his land or premises or interferes with the enjoyment of his right over any land, premises or water;

(vi) Compels or entices a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe to do ‘begar’ or other similar forms of forced or bonded labour other than compulsory service for public purposes imposed by Government;

(vii) Forces or intimidates a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe not to vote or to vote to a particular candidate or to vote in a manner other than that provided by law; (viii)Institutes false, malicious or vexations suit or criminal or other legal proceedings against a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe;

(ix) Gives, any false or frivolous information to any public servant and thereby causes such public servant to use his lawful power to the injury or annoyance of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe;

(x) Intentionally insuits or intimidates with intent to humiliate a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe in any place within public view;

(xi)Assaults or uses forces to any woman belonging to a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe with intent to dishonor or outrage her modesty;
(xii)Being in a position to dominate the will of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe and uses that position to exploit the sexually to which she would not have otherwise agreed;

(xiii) Corrupts or fouls the water of any spring, reservoir or any other source ordinarily used by members of the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes so as to render it less fit for the purpose for which it is ordinarily used;

(xiv) Denies a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe any customary right of passage to a place of public resort or obstructs such member so as to prevent him from using or having access to a place of public resort to which other members of public or any section thereof have a right to use or access to;

(xv) Forces or causes a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe to leave his house, village or other place of residence, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extent to five years and with fine.

(2) Whoever, not being a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe: -

(i) Gives or fabricates false evidence intending thereby to cause, or knowing it to be likely that he will thereby cause, any member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe to be convicted of an offence which is capital by law thw for the time being in force shall be punished with imprisonment for life and with fine; and if an innocent member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe be convicted and executed in consequence of such false or fabricated evidence, the person who gives or fabricates such false evidence, shall be punished with death;

(ii) Gives or fabricates false evidence intending thereby to cause, or knowing it to be likely that he will thereby cause, any member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe to be convicted of an offence which is not capital but punishable with imprisonment for a term of seven years or onwards, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to seven years or upwards and with fine;

(iii) Commits mischief by fire or any explosive substance intending to cause or knowing it to be likely that he will thereby cause damage to any property belonging to a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to seven years and with fine;

(iv) Commits mischief by fire or any explosive substance intending to cause or knowing it to be likely that he will thereby cause destruction of any building which is ordinarily used a place of worship or as a place for human dwelling or as a place for custody of the property by a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe, shall be punishable with imprisonment for life and with fine;

(v) Commits any offence under the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) punishable with imprisonment for a term of ten years or more against a person of property on the ground that such person is a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe or such property belongs to such member, shall be punishable with imprisonment for life and with fine;

(vi) Knowingly or having reason to believe that on offence has been committed under this Chapter, causes any evidence of the commission of that offence to disappear with the intention of screening the offender from legal punishment, or with that intention gives any information respecting the offence which he knows or believes to be false, shall be punishable with the punishment provided for that offence; or

(vii) Being a public servant, commits any offence under this section, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one year but which may extent to the punishment provided that offence.

4. Punishment for neglect of duties: - Whoever, being a public servant but not being a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe, willfully neglect his duties required to be performed by him under this Act, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to one year.

5. Enhanced punishment for subsequent conviction:- Whoever, having already been convicted an offence under this Chapter is convicted for the second offence or any offence subsequent to the second offence, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one year but which may extend to the punishment provided for that offence.

6. Application for certain provisions of the Indian Penal Code:- Subject to the other provisions of this Act, the provisions of section 34, Chapter-III, Chapter-IV, Chapter-V, Chapter-VA, section 149 and Chapter XXVIII of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860), shall, so far as may be, apply for the purposes of this Act as they apply for the purposes of the Indian Penal Code.

7. Forfeiture of property of certain persons...---(i) where a person has been convicted of any offence punishable under this Chapter, the Special Court may, in addition to awarding any punishment, by order in writing, declare that any property, movable or immovable or both, belonging to the person, which has been used for the commission of that offence, shall stand forfeited to Government.

(ii) Where any person is accused of any offence under this Chapter, it shall be open to the Special Court trying him to pass an order that all or any of the properties, movable or immovable or both, belonging to him, shallk, during the period of such trial, be attached, and where such trial ends in conviction, the property so attached shall be liable to forfeiture to the extent it is required for the purpose of realization of any fine imposed this Chapter.

8. Presumption as to offences:-

In a prosecution for an offence under this Chapter, if it is proved that----------

(a) the accused rendered any financial assistance to a person accused of, or reasonable suspected of committing, an offence under this Chapter, the Special Court shall presume, unless the contrary is provided, that such person had abetted the offence;

(b) a group of persons committed an offence under this Chapter and if it is proved that the offence committed was a sequal to any existing dispute regarding land or any other matter, it shall be presumed that the offence was committed in furtherance of the common intention or in prosecution of the common object.

9. Conferment of powers--- (i) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code or in any other provision of this Act, the State Government may, if it considers it necessary or expedient so to do:-------

(a) for the prevention of and for coping with any offence under this Act, or

(b) for any case or class or group of cases under this Act.,

in any district or part thereof, confer, by notification in the Official Gazette, on any officer of the State Government, the powers exercisable by a police officer under the Code in such district or part thereof, as the case may be,

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