A Critical Analysis Of The Operation Of Legal Safeguards Vis-À-Vis The Crimes Committed

A Critical Analysis Of The Operation Of Legal Safeguards Vis-À-Vis The Crimes Committed Against The Scheduled Castes

Aditya Praveen Kumar, School of Law, CHRIST (Deemed to be University)

ABSTRACT

The systematic oppression of a class of people termed as inferior and ‘untouchable’ had marginalised and ostracised many. But in a country with over sixteen per cent of its population classified as members of the Scheduled Castes, the social boycott and atrocities they are subjected to has seen no decline. The Scheduled Castes have been given constitutional provisions that encapsulate equality, reservations and protection of economic and educational interests. Yet, the commission of crimes and violence against the so-called lower castes has not been deterred by this law. There has been an inversely proportional decline in the conviction rate of perpetrators of these heinous crimes. Many cases of atrocities go unreported for the police either buckle due to perpetrators using their influence, as well as the prejudices of the officers themselves which results in grossly underestimated figures of crimes, attributable to the mixture of administrative neglect and caste-based prejudices. This research paper seeks to analyse the causes of the crimes against the Scheduled Castes, highlight the inadequacies in the special laws that deal with such crimes and correlating the cause and action to the problems of prevention, deterrence and punishment of the oppressors.

Keywords: Scheduled Castes, Dalits, Crime, Atrocities, Socio-Economic Mobility, Sensitisation