Rahul Gandhi and Congress MPs’ protest against SC/ST Act

The Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) Act was created to protect the interests of the minorities.

But recently the Act underwent a change that did not please the minorities.

And so the Congress have gathered their men and have staged protests.

Congress MPs, led by party chief Rahul Gandhi, today staged a protest in front of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue inside Parliament premises, demanding that the Centre seeks a review of the Supreme Court’s verdict on the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The apex court had on Tuesday diluted its stringent provisions mandating immediate arrest under the law in a bid to protect honest public servants discharging bona fide duties from being blackmailed with false cases under the SC/ST Act.

The Congress MPs raised the slogan, “Daliton ke samman mein, Rahul Gandhi maidan mein (Rahul Gandhi stands for protection of Dalit’s rights).”

READ ALSO: BREAKING NEWS! IS THE SC/ST ACT DILUTED?

Earlier, the MPs gathered at the office of the Congress Parliament Party and discussed the strategy to move forward on the issue.

Sources said the party’s strategy inside Parliament was also discussed with Gandhi during the meeting.

Both Houses of Parliament – the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha – have not been functioning ever since the start of the second leg of the Budget Session on March 5.

This is the third week in a row that Parliament proceedings have been disrupted and has not transacted any business.
The crucial Finance Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha amid the din created by various parties.

Attempts by Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu and Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to work out a solution to ensure smooth conduct of business have yielded no results.

WHAT THE COURT PLANS TO DO?

In the face of stiff pressure from both within the NDA and opposition, government may soon file a review petition in the Supreme Court on the Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe Prevention of Atrocities Act verdict.

The apex court earlier this week had barred immediate arrest on the registration of the FIR under the act, preliminary enquiry within seven days and introduction of provisions of anticipatory bail.

Union Minister and NDA ally Ram Vilas Paswan had on Thursday said that Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe communities in the country are angry and disappointed at Supreme Court’s verdict on SC/ST Atrocities Prevention Act.

READ ALSO: Will this new Court law help protect the minorities?

“We have discussed this issue within the party. We want government to file an immediate review petition before the Supreme Court,” said Pawan in Delhi.

The SC/ST Atrocities Act was first passed in 1989 by the Janata Dal government led by VP Singh. Paswan as Social Justice Minister in the government piloted the original bill.

Another NDA ally and minister, Ramdas Athawale met Finance minister Arun Jaitely and Amit Shah to express his concerns on the issue in Parliament.

Opposition parties led by the Congress on Wednesday had staged a protest in Parliament against the verdict.