Lucknow: In a significant judgment aimed at curbing the misuse of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, a Special SC/ST Court in Lucknow on Thursday sentenced a Dalit woman to three years of imprisonment for lodging a false FIR under the Act. The court also issued detailed guidelines to ensure that relief is disbursed only in genuine cases.
The verdict was delivered by Additional District Judge Vivekanand Sharan Tripathi, presiding over the special SC/ST Act court. The accused, identified as Mamta (who goes by one name), was found guilty of filing a fabricated case against three individuals — Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Vinod Kumar, Kishan Kumar, and Arjun Kumar.
According to the prosecution, Mamta had lodged an FIR on August 2, 2019, at the Mall police station in Lucknow, invoking multiple sections of the SC/ST Act. The complaint, however, was found to be baseless during the investigation. Then Circle Officer Seshmani Pathak, who conducted the probe, submitted a final report stating that no such incident had occurred.
Delivering the judgment, the court directed that if any monetary relief had been granted to the woman under the SC/ST Act, it must be recovered from her. “The court has also laid down fresh guidelines to ensure proper and phased payment of relief under the Act,” government advocate Arvind Mishra informed.
As per the new directives, 10% to 25% of the relief amount should be paid upon the registration of the FIR, and 50% after the filing of the charge sheet. However, no relief should be disbursed if the FIR is proven false or if the final report is accepted by the court.
The court further instructed the district magistrate to ensure the implementation of these guidelines in letter and spirit.
Legal experts say the ruling seeks to strike a balance — deterring false complaints while safeguarding the genuine victims of caste-based atrocities and ensuring that the provisions of the SC/ST Act are not misused.
