Delhi: In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court of India has imposed strict conditions on the grant of anticipatory bail under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, commonly known as the SC/ST Act. The apex court clarified that such bail can only be granted if it is prima facie established that no offence under the Act has been committed.
The judgment came from a bench comprising Chief Justice B.R. Gavai, Justice K.V. Chandran, and Justice N.V. Anjaria. The decision was delivered while setting aside a Bombay High Court order that had granted anticipatory bail to an accused person in a case involving caste-based humiliation and assault.
The case stemmed from a complaint in which the accused allegedly subjected the complainant to public humiliation by calling him caste-based slurs and physically assaulting him with an iron rod. The complainant’s mother and aunt also faced similar mistreatment. According to the FIR, the accused insulted the complainant by calling him “Mangtyano” — a term clearly used to target his caste identity — and even threatened to set his house on fire. The incident reportedly occurred because the complainant did not vote for a candidate of the accused’s choice during assembly elections.
The complainant approached the Supreme Court after the Bombay High Court granted anticipatory bail to the accused. Upon reviewing the case, the apex court found that a prima facie case existed under Section 3 of the SC/ST Act, which specifically addresses offences of caste-based insults, intimidation, and violence.
Justice N.V. Anjaria, who authored the judgment, emphasized that the presence or absence of a prima facie case must be determined strictly based on the FIR and the complainant’s statements. The court made it clear that lower courts should not enter the realm of evidence or conduct a “mini-trial” at the stage of anticipatory bail.
The bench highlighted that anticipatory bail under the SC/ST Act is an exception, not the rule. The protective intent of the Act must not be diluted, as it was specifically designed to safeguard vulnerable communities from systemic oppression, caste-based violence, and humiliation.
