New Delhi: A casteist slur allegedly uttered in a closed room cannot by itself attract the “public view” requirement under the SC/ST Act, the Supreme Court has ruled while quashing proceedings against a school manager.
A police case was subsequently registered under the SC/ST Act and a chargesheet was filed. A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta was hearing an appeal against an Allahabad High Court order that had refused to quash proceedings against the manager under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
Because the case was allegedly motivated by vendetta, the high court refused to interfere and held that the proceedings could not be quashed simply. The Supreme Court examined Sections 3(1)(R) and 3(1)(S) of the SC/ST Act, which deal with intentionally insulting or intimidating a member of a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe and abusing such a person by caste name in a place within public view.
It said a prima facie case existed. The matter then reached the Supreme Court, with the question of whether the alleged casteist remarks were made in “public view” forming the basis of the court’s examination.
The manager challenged the summons issued by the special court before the Allahabad High Court.
Cross-Allegations Emerge in School Office Incident
In a developing legal dispute, the wife of the school manager has filed a counter-first information report (cross-FIR) against the complainant, claiming verbal abuse and assault occurred in the school office. She stated that her husband, the school manager, intervened during the incident and was also assaulted. A local court has acknowledged the chargesheet related to this case, indicating that legal proceedings are underway.
