BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court has sought a detailed response from the state government as to why the rate of conviction is minimal or zero in manual scavenging cases. The court also sought a response on why Section 3(j) of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act is not invoked while registering First Information Reports wherever applicable.
A division bench of Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale and Justice Krishna S Dixit passed the order while issuing notice to the central and state governments, the Karnataka State Commission for Safai Karmacharis and the Karnataka State Safai Karmachari Development Corporation. The notice was issued based on a suo moto public interest litigation initiated after cognisance of TNIE’s report ‘Manual scavenging continues despite ban’ published on December 25.
Hearing the petition presented by Advocate Sridhar Prabhu, who is assisting the court as amicus curiae, the court said it is common knowledge that either no serious steps are taken to see that the provisions of the SC and ST Act are invoked, or in case such provisions are invoked, the outcome (conviction) is either minimal or zero.
The court noted that if such cases are to be taken to a logical end, the investigating agency, public prosecutors and adjudicating authorities involved in the process must take the matter with all seriousness. The court also sought a response from the state on why it has not invoked Section 3(j) of the SC-ST Act when those from other communities engage SC, ST people to septic tanks, and the steps taken to ensure conviction in such cases.