Prevention of Atrocities on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
The Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 was legislated to prevent the commission of offences of atrocities against the members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, to provide for Special Courts for the trial of such offences and for the relief and rehabilitation of the victims of such offences and for connected and incidental matters. The terms "Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes" have been defined under Clause 24 and Clause 25 of Article 366 of the Constitution. The Act lays down punishments for offences of atrocities committed against member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe. The acts constituting offence have been distinctly prescribed by the Act, such as - forcing a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe to drink or eat any inedible or obnoxious substance, wrongful occupation or cultivation of any land owned by, or allotted to, or notified by any competent authority to be allotted to, a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe or gets the land allotted to him transferred, forcing or intimidating a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe not to vote or to vote for a particular candidate or to vote in a manner other than that provided by law, etc. The Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 lays down punishment for neglect of duties on the part of a public servant but not being a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe who willfully neglects his duties required to be performed by him under this Act. Further, the Act provides that subject to the rules formulated by the Central Government, the State Government shall take such measures as may be necessary for the effective implementation of this Act.
