VISAKHAPATNAM: Andhra Pradesh has been recorded as the state with the second highest false cases registered under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989, in 2015. As many as 8,900 cases filed under the Act in India were found to be false or mistake of fact or law.
Referring to the data of NCRB 2015, minister of state for social justice and empowerment Vijay Sampla said over half of the cases were reported in 2015 from Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh reported the second highest at 1,099 cases, while Bihar recorded 664 cases. The NCRB data revealed that 5,134 cases were registered under the Act in 2015 in AP.
“Genuine cases of atrocities are not reported either in media or to the police station. People try to foist cases on another just to settle scores. There are innumerable examples when we hear people on the street lamenting that if the Upper class had to be taught a lesson, file a false case against him,” said senior advocate K. Muralidhar.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (SC/ST cell), Vizag City, B. Mohan Rao, said: “Most of the cases registered under the Act end in an acquittal, indicating its abuse. On the nature of complaints, 90 per cent of the cases are filed for abuse in the name of caste. But, police investigation in many cases reveals that there was no evidence and non-cooperation of the complainants.”
“During investigation, our police officers found that many complaints were lodged with ill-motives. We have been registering cases under the Act following complaints, but very few proved to be genuine,” said Superintendent of Police Rahul Dev Sharma.
