Latest news with #Kausalya
Time of India
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Caste violence victims insist on separate law
Madurai: Gaps and delays in police and judicial processes are leading to low conviction rate in SC/ST Act cases, according to survivors and family members of victims of caste-based crimes who attended a consultative meeting in Madurai on Sunday. The meeting, organised by Evidence, a Madurai-based NGO working for dalit rights, put forth suggestions to bring down such crimes in Tamil Nadu . Kausalya, anti-caste activist and survivor of a caste killing, said such crimes need to be addressed before they escalate. "When a couple has an inter-caste love marriage, they are immediately faced with a lot of mental challenges. There have been cases of the bride being kidnapped or restrained. These too need to be addressed as caste crimes. The state govt is adamant about not framing a separate law for honour killings," she said. Evidence executive director A Kathir said there are numerous hurdles in SC/ST Act cases, right from the filing of FIR. "Over 7,000 SC/ST Act cases are pending in court, and Madurai tops the list. Such cases on an average take over five years. Also, there are convictions only in around 3% of these cases. That too, mainly because the crimes committed were heinous," he said. The mother of M Alagendran, 21, of Virudhunagar, who was murdered by a gang from another SC community in June 2024, said her son was killed due to a love affair with a girl, by her relatives. "However, this case will not come under the SC/ST Act as the victim and accused are from different communities under SC. But, it is still an honour killing, which is why we need a separate law," said A Kathir. He said the State Level High Power Vigilance and Monitoring Committee constituted under the chief minister is not functioning effectively, especially at the grassroots level. An award for best service for social change was presented to film director Era Saravanan during the event, for his contributions in highlighting and fighting against caste discrimination.
The Hindu
25-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
‘Separate Act for honour killing essential to address murders committed in same communities'
'As honour killing is even influenced by disparity in economic status of members of the same caste, a separate Act for honour killing is essential,' according to Kausalya of Shankar Social Justice Trust. Speaking at an event organised by Evidence, a non-governmental organisation based in Madurai, on Sunday to honour people working towards social change, Ms. Kausalya said that due to the complex nature of honour killing, which happens within the same caste or within two different caste Hindu communities, not all could be brought under the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. Echoing her demand, Kathir, founder of Evidence, said that a similar incident happened between two sub castes in the Scheduled Castes communities in Virudhunagar district. 'In such instances the accused cannot be framed under the SC/ST Act as both the accused and victims are from different SC communities.' Quoting the complexities, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, when he was the Opposition leader, advocated for a separate Act for honour killing. But after coming to power, he questioned the need for a separate Act when the SC/ST Act already existed, he added. When sections for women harassment were already there in the defunct Indian Penal Code, then why was a separate Act made for women harassment, he asked. 'As the intricacies associated with the regular Acts cannot be easily addressed, a specific Act becomes essential.' Pointing out several discrepancies in registering a FIR in violence against SC people, Mr. Kathirsaid the police department, lapdogs of the State, were only trying to dilute the charges to the maximum extent to prevent the caste Hindu communities, to whom most of the police officials belonged to, from being framed under the Act. Pointing out an incident, where the guidelines for the SC/ST Act was issued by the Tamil Nadu government was wrongly stated as Adi Dravidar instead of Scheduled Castes, he said when even senior level officials lacked knowledge, how could the police be blamed for not wholly understanding the Act. 'When the SC/ST Act was a Central act, how could the State government change its name? Also, the guidelines states that the Investigating Officer for SC/ST Act was inspector while it is the DSP who should be the IO,' he added. While lack of knowledge in understanding the Act was a problem, the casteist mentality of the officials and the police department prevented an objective and fair investigation in such cases. The Vadakadu incident, where SCs were attacked by caste Hindus, the Superintendent of Police and Collector refrained from visiting the scene of violence until the Madras High Court's criticism for not following the rules and order to visit the houses. Even to make the officials follow the law, the public had to approach the court, then how could the judicial process be easier for SC people who had to fight against the State, Mr. Kathir said. Activists who spoke at the event suggested a broader review of the progress of Public Prosecutors, IOs by the SC/ST Act, district and State-level committees in investigating and arguing for such SC/ST cases. Without the review of the functioning of the police, how could the State learn about how the Act was being implemented for the welfare of the people for whom the Act was constituted, they asked. Era Saravanan, director of Tamil movie Nandhan, was presented an award for his work towards social change.
