The Orissa High Court stated that if during a tussle, caste name is taken suddenly in context of abuse, it will not attract an offence under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention od Atrocities) Act, 1989 unless it is prima facie established that there was an intention to humiliate or insult the victim for their caste or tribe identity.
Brief Facts:
The present petition challenges the order of the sessions court according to which the petitioners were found guilty for intentionally insulting or intimidating a member of the SC/ST community within public view under the SC/ST Act and for the commission of offence against a person or property of an SC/ST person under the Indian Penal Code.
Contentions of the Petitioner:
The learned counsel for the petitioners argued that the complaint was false and no offence of this nature had been committed under the SC/ST Act as there was no intention to humiliate or intimidate the Respondent for being a Scheduled Caste.
Contentions of the Respondent
The learned counsel for the state submitted that considering the FIR and the allegations made therein, the offences are prima facie made out because during and in course of the alleged incident, the opposite party no. 2 was abused and the alleged mischief was committed. Further, since the investigation proved that the alleged incident took place, the learned court below has not committed any error or illegality.
Observations of the Court:
The court has observed that the alleged abuse hurled at a witness, in which the caste name was mentioned, was a spontaneous incident and not intended to insult or humiliate the witness or commit any offenses under the Special Act. The court noted that the case was lodged by a third party or witness and not the victim, and therefore, the offenses under the SC/ST Act were not applicable. The court referred to the Supreme Court's ruling in Hitesh Verma vs. State of Uttarakhand and Another which stated that not every remark against a member of the SC/ST community will amount to an offense under the Act unless there is an intention to humiliate the victim because of their caste.
Decision of the Court:
The High Court overturned the order of the Sessions Court and directed it to reconsider their decision regarding the petitioner, taking into account the chargesheet and other relevant materials, including the case diary.
Case Title: Ajay Pattanaik @ Ajaya Kumar Pattanayak & Anr. vs State of Odisha & Anr.
Coram: Honourable Justice R.K. Pattanaik
Case No.: CRLMC No. 2636 of 2021
Advocate for the Petitioner: Mr. Deepak Ranjan Sundaray
Advocate for the Respondent: Mr. S.K. Mishra; Mr. Soumya Ranjan Mohanty
Read Judgment @LatestLaws.com
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