CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu may be one of the few States that have challenged the Supreme Court’s recent order diluting the Prevention of Atrocities (SC/ST) Act, 1989.But, activists said the State itself has been for years sleeping over the formation of special courts that could benefit Dalits belonging to the ‘atrocity-prone’ regions.The State government’s petition on Wednesday said the Supreme Curt order would have adverse impact and would hit the 223 villages classified as atrocity-prone and on the 347 villages classified as dormant atrocity-prone in Tamil Nadu.
However, three years after a bench of the Madras High Court, headed by the then Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, ordered the state government to set up special courts in 16 districts of the State, only two have been set up. The court, in its order on June 2015, pointed out the provision under Section 14 of the Prevention of Atrocities (SC/ ST) Act 1989. Till then, the State had only four such special courts.
In April 2017, a GO was passed for the establishment of 16 additional special courts in four phases, at the rate of four courts per year. Posts of 15 district judges and 510 supportive staff were sanctioned and a sum of `12.89 crore was earmarked. However, according to A Narayanan from Change India, who filed the original writ petition in 2012, the progress in the first two phases has been ‘very slow’, even after three years since the case was disposed of. “The first eight special courts sanctioned for 2016-2018 should be completed without further delay,” he said.
Formation of special courts at Dindigul, Ramanathapuram, Srivilliputhur and Pudukottai in the first phase and in the remaining 12 districts in the second phase has been delayed, he added.According to the GO dated April 6, 2017, Dindigul, Ramanathapuram, Srivilliputhur, Virudhunagar, Pudukkottai, Kanchee-puram, Chengalpet, Perambalur, Theni, Tirupur, Tiruvannamalai, Vellore, Tiruvaru, Thoothukudi, Kanniyakumari, Coimbatore, Cuddalore and Namakkal were to have a special court each.
These regions were identified by the then Registrar General, based on the number of pending cases in courts.Said Christudas Gandhi, who was involved in the sanction of the first four special courts in 1996,”Back then four courts were formed. Now in line with today’s population, additional courts are needed, at least one for every three districts.” He further pointed out, “Posts for the special public prosecutors who belong to the scheduled castes were sanctioned for special courts. They should be given enough training under the Directorate of Prosecution.”