The Union Cabinet had on Sunday night quietly cleared one more ordinance wooing yet another social group, probably more committed to the Congress than the Jats.
This ordinance brings into force an amendment to the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989, which makes a wide range of day-to-day instances of discrimination and caste oppression, offenses under the law.
About 620 Dalit organizations from 20 states, all across the country, have been agitating for this piece of legislation for about five years. "This amendment means a lot for the Dalits of the country and they will be extremely happy with Congress for making it into law and underscor the fact that Dalits remain Congress' primary social base," said Congress' SC cell convenor SDJM Prasad.
For instance, now onwards any dominant caste member who forces a Dalit or tribal person to get down from a horse during a wedding procession or stop a Dalit from using a utensil meant for public use or prevent someone from stepping into a shop can be sentenced to a maximum jail term of five years. And if a public servant willfully neglects to observe his duties under this law can also get a maximum punished of one year's imprisonment.
The public servant's duties include registering an FIR, recording the statement of the victims and conducting investigation and filing a charge sheet in the special court within 60 days.
New exclusive special courts will be established under the amended law by chief justices of the high courts to try cases of atrocities against Dalits. Every such court will have an exclusive public prosecutor too.
The UPA government and Congress clearly aim to win the hearts of Dalits by pushing this amendment which was a persistent demand of a wronged community.
The Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955 was the first piece of legislation that aimed at stopping untouchability.
About 25 years more to bring in the Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989. And now it has taken another 25 years to give it more teeth.
"At the twentieth anniversary of the Atrocities Act in 2009 all Dalit organizations monitoring the implementation of the law came together and sought the amendment of the law and thus we initiated the Coalition for Strengthening of the Prevention of Atrocities Act.
This Coalition has 620 organizations from 20 states. Now, the government has implemented what the Dalit activists all over the country wanted," said Prasad, who was the convenor of the Coalition too.
The issue gained momentum after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi heard out a group of 120 organisations at Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Contemporary Studies in May 2012 and soon it was picked up by the National Advisory Committee headed by Sonia Gandhi and an amendment bill was tabled in December 2013.
But it could not be passed in the Lok Sabha. By turning it into an ordinance and bringing it into force, Congress has kept it alive and made it a crucial political issue for Dalit voters.
This ordinance brings into force an amendment to the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989, which makes a wide range of day-to-day instances of discrimination and caste oppression, offenses under the law.
About 620 Dalit organizations from 20 states, all across the country, have been agitating for this piece of legislation for about five years. "This amendment means a lot for the Dalits of the country and they will be extremely happy with Congress for making it into law and underscor the fact that Dalits remain Congress' primary social base," said Congress' SC cell convenor SDJM Prasad.
For instance, now onwards any dominant caste member who forces a Dalit or tribal person to get down from a horse during a wedding procession or stop a Dalit from using a utensil meant for public use or prevent someone from stepping into a shop can be sentenced to a maximum jail term of five years. And if a public servant willfully neglects to observe his duties under this law can also get a maximum punished of one year's imprisonment.
The public servant's duties include registering an FIR, recording the statement of the victims and conducting investigation and filing a charge sheet in the special court within 60 days.
New exclusive special courts will be established under the amended law by chief justices of the high courts to try cases of atrocities against Dalits. Every such court will have an exclusive public prosecutor too.
The UPA government and Congress clearly aim to win the hearts of Dalits by pushing this amendment which was a persistent demand of a wronged community.
The Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955 was the first piece of legislation that aimed at stopping untouchability.
About 25 years more to bring in the Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989. And now it has taken another 25 years to give it more teeth.
"At the twentieth anniversary of the Atrocities Act in 2009 all Dalit organizations monitoring the implementation of the law came together and sought the amendment of the law and thus we initiated the Coalition for Strengthening of the Prevention of Atrocities Act.
This Coalition has 620 organizations from 20 states. Now, the government has implemented what the Dalit activists all over the country wanted," said Prasad, who was the convenor of the Coalition too.
The issue gained momentum after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi heard out a group of 120 organisations at Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Contemporary Studies in May 2012 and soon it was picked up by the National Advisory Committee headed by Sonia Gandhi and an amendment bill was tabled in December 2013.
But it could not be passed in the Lok Sabha. By turning it into an ordinance and bringing it into force, Congress has kept it alive and made it a crucial political issue for Dalit voters.
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