Intro
The court said existing legal safeguards are adequate to prevent arbitrary arrests and misuse of the law.
New Delhi
The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a plea challenging the constitutional validity of provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, including those strengthened through the 2018 amendment. The court held that sufficient safeguards already exist against possible misuse of the law and declined to reconsider its earlier judgment upholding the amendment.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kan, Justice Joymala Bagchi and Justice V Mohana was hearing a petition filed by Brijbhushan Saini. The plea alleged that provisions of the SC/ST Act violate fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 14, 21 and 22 of the Constitution and sought safeguards against arbitrary arrests and alleged misuse of the statute.
Articles 14, 21 and 22 collectively safeguard equality before law, life and personal liberty, and protections against arbitrary arrest and detention. Appearing for the petitioner, advocate Hari Shankar Jain argued that the stringent provisions of the SC/ST Act have resulted in arrests and alleged malicious prosecution.
He questioned the statutory restrictions on anticipatory bail and contended that the provisions could encourage the filing of false FIRs. Jain also referred to the alleged distribution of Rs 493 crore in compensation under the SC/ST Act and questioned the legal basis for such payments. He argued that such provisions amounted to “reverse discrimination” and were “further creating a divide in society”.
The 2018 amendment was enacted after the court’s 2018 judgment in Dr Subhash Kashinath Mahajan v State of Maharashtra, which had introduced safeguards including preliminary inquiry and approval before arrest in certain circumstances and held that anticipatory bail could be granted in appropriate cases.
Parliament subsequently introduced Section 18A through the 2018 amendment, removing the requirement of a preliminary inquiry before registration of an FIR, dispensing with prior approval for arrest and restoring the statutory bar on anticipatory bail.