CHENNAI: At the State Vigilance and Monitoring Committee meeting of the Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department on Saturday, Chief Minister MK Stalin credited the government’s awareness campaigns for a decline in cases registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. He stated that the number of cases had dropped by 6% in 2024 compared to the previous year.
However, a closer look at the data, accessed independently by this newspaper, reveals while overall cases have decreased, cases of heinous crimes including murder, sexual abuse and POCSO cases filed under the Act have increased since last year.
According to the data presented at the meeting, 1,954 cases were registered under the Act in 2022 which increased to 2,068 in 2023 before dropping to 1,939 in 2024. This means that there was a 5.8% increase from 2022 to 2023, followed by a 6.24% decline in 2024. In the first two months of 2025 alone, 414 cases have been filed.
Despite overall reduction in cases, number of murder cases under the Act rose from 92 in 2023 to 97 in 2024. Sexual abuse cases spiked from 5 to 12, while POCSO cases surged from 200 to 254. In 2022, the figures stood at 64, 16 and 258 respectively.
The drop was seen in cases registered under Sections 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s) of the Act, which fell from 1,595 in 2023 to 1,375 in 2024. These sections of the SC/ST Act relate to publicly humiliating, intimidating or abusing a person using caste names.
Attempts to murder cases also decreased from 65 in 2023 to 56 in 2024. However, cases categorised as ‘other sections of the act’ have steadily increased from 109 in 2022 to 110 in 2023 and 144 in 2024.
The data also reveals a low conviction rate in cases filed under the Act. In 2022, 2023, and 2024, convictions were recorded in only 93, 92 and 114 cases, respectively, while acquittals stood at 877, 1,093, and 1,092 during the same period.
From 2022 to February 2025, 267 murder cases under the act were registered, with only six convictions- three each in 2022 and 2023. Of the remaining cases, 237 are pending trial, 14 under investigation, six ended in acquittal and four were closed after investigation. In 35 sexual harassment cases filed since 2022, there has been just one conviction, with 31 cases pending trial, one acquittal and two under investigation.
For POCSO cases, 773 cases were registered in this period, but only 17 resulted in convictions, 11 in 2022 and six in 2023, with none in 2024 and 2025. Acquittals were recorded in 123 cases, while 590 remain pending trial, 36 under investigation and seven closed after probe.
While the government lists several measures taken to create awareness to prevent violence and discrimination, activists argue that it should focus on the preventive measures already outlined in the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. These measures include frequent inspections of atrocity-prone areas by district officials and formation of a special police force dedicated to preventing caste violence.