The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to examine petitions challenging the recent amendment to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, but declined to stay the legislation without hearing the government’s view, News18 reported. The court asked the government to file a response and said it would take up the matter after six weeks.
The court’s decision came a day after protests broke out in Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh against the amendment bill passed by Parliament last month. The bill reversed the Supreme Court’s order in March that had diluted the Act’s provisions. The court had said public servants cannot be arrested immediately after a complaint is filed against them under the atrocities law. At least 11 people were killed in nationwide protests, mainly by Dalit groups, against the court’s dilution of the law on April 2.
On Thursday, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said all political parties should come together to discuss the amendment bill. Mahajan said the matter must not be politicised since all parties had voted in favour of maintaining the basic structure of the Act, PTI reported
“The parliament’s work is to enact laws but all MPs should think on this subject,” Mahajan said. “Suppose I give a big chocolate to my son and I later realise that it is not good for him to have so much of it at one go, one will try to take back the chocolate from the child. But you cannot take it as he will get angry and start crying. Instead you can make the child understand and take back the chocolate from him.”
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