SC/ST Act: Over 47,338 cases filed in 2016

New Delhi: Different state police lodged 47,338 criminal cases for various crimes against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in 2016. As many as 40,774 cases were registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act while others were lodged under other different sections of the law.

Minister of state for home Hansraj Gangaram Ahir informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday that the data was based on records compiled by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). Various dalit groups have resorted to nationwide protests against a recent Supreme Court verdict which diluted certain provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act.

The minister also informed the Parliament in a written reply that out of the total cases the investigating agency filed chargesheet in 78.3 per cent of them which resulted in a conviction rate of 25.8 per cent. Out of the total cases 6,564 were registered for crimes against Scheduled Tribes in 2016. According to the minister, in the year 2015, as many as 38,564 cases were registered for crimes against Scheduled Castes.