KOCHI: The Kerala High Court has observed that despite protective provisions for Scheduled Caste communities in the Constitution and laws like the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, discrimination and ostracisation against them have not been fully eradicated.
Justice V G Arun said the Scheduled Castes in India have faced systemic ignominy like exclusion, untouchability and violence rooted in centuries-old caste hierarchy. They had restricted access to resources, land and quality education. Still, the discrimination continues. “One cannot be oblivious of the fact that the tolerance level of persons from vulnerable sections will not be the same as that of those who have not suffered any such ignominy. To put it pithily, only the wearer knows where the shoe pinches,” the court said.
The HC made the remarks while dismissing a petition filed by C K Kusuman, former principal of DB College in Kottayam’s Keezhoor, seeking to quash the case against him for allegedly making casteist remarks against an assistant professor in 2022.
Advocate Thomas J Anakkallunkal, the assistant professor’s counsel, said the principal made the comments with the deliberate intention of insulting him by reason of his parentage. The remarks were made during the staff meeting of the college, the counsel said.
The court said the question of whether the insulting remark made inside the hall can be perceived as something done within public view can only be decided based on evidence, and the HC cannot conduct a mini-trial or microscopic scrutiny of documents.