In a letter marked ‘urgent’ and addressed to the district SP, the commission cited complaints that some videos circulating on social media contained abusive and casteist remarks against a Circle Inspector.
The issue surfaced in the aftermath of a youth’s suicide 10 days ago. The deceased, Satish, had alleged harassment by the 3-Town police station CI. The incident had triggered protests by YSRC leaders. Minister Bharat Gupta had reacted strongly against the opposition party stand.
Subsequently, some individuals allegedly posted videos on social media, making derogatory and caste-based comments against the CI, Sheshayya. Through a formal complaint, these videos were brought to the attention of the SC commission chairman KS Jawahar.
According to the commission, the videos prima facie indicate instances of public humiliation, caste-based abuse and intimidation. It directed the officials to invoke provisions under the Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955, the SC-ST Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989 and relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
It advised the authorities to verify the authenticity of the viral videos, identify those who made the derogatory remarks, initiate prompt legal action against the accused and submit a detailed action taken report (ATR) to the commission.
Chairman Jawahar underlined the responsibility of the administration to safeguard the constitutional rights of Scheduled Castes.