A victim under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (SC/ST Act) or his dependent, should be mandatorily heard in any proceeding under the SC/ST Act as provided in Section 15A of the Act, the Supreme Court ruled on Friday (Bhoopendra Singh v. State of Rajasthan).
The condition under Section 15A to hear victim or his dependent in any proceeding for bail, discharge, release, parole, conviction or sentence is an important mandate under the Act and should be strictly construed and enforced, the top court said, according to Bar and Bench.
“These are very vital protections which are there to benefit the members of the community subjected to discrimination and prejudice and these provisions must be strictly construed and enforced,” the Court stated.
A Bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and BV Nagarathna, therefore, set aside a judgment of the Rajasthan High Court which had granted bail to the accused without following the mandate under Section 15A.
