NHRC open hearing in Chennai
The National Human Rights Commission organized an open hearing on complaints of atrocities against scheduled castes in Tamil Nadu at Chennai on the 7th-8th August, 2012. Inaugurating it, the NHRC Chairperson, Mr. Justice K.G. Balakrishnan said that through such open hearings, the Commission is trying to reach out to marginalized and poor sections of society in the rural hinterland. He said that idea is to hear peoples' grievances and convey the same to State authorities with NHRC recommendations and to help them in the best possible way.
Justice Balakrishnan said that the NHRC is conscious of its obligations towards the cause of Scheduled Castes. The K.B. Saxena report, commissioned by the NHRC, observed that despite several laws and schemes in place for the welfare of Scheduled Castes, the delivery mechanism was not up to the mark and that the NHRC needed to organize open hearings of issues concerning problems of Scheduled Castes in different States to improve the situation. Thus, the NHRC is trying to reach as many States as possible to hear the complaints of atrocities against Scheduled Castes. He said that the NHRC's efforts are to help States in good governance and he hoped that the State government officers would help the Commission in discharge of its duty.
On the occasion, Mr. Devendra Nath Sarangi, Chief Secretary, Government of Tamil Nadu said that the State government did not distinguish between any members of society when it came to welfare measures. Free healthcare and free school education up to 12 standard for all were among some such measures.
On the 7th -8th September, 2012, the NHRC heard 317 complaints, which were found fit for inquiry out of more than 1000 complaints it received in response to public notices issued about this open hearing. 168 cases were taken up in Bench No. 1 presided over by Member, Mr. Justice B.C. Patel, and 149 cases were taken up in Bench No. 2 presided over by Member, Mr. Satyabrata Pal. Most common issues raised in complaints were as follows:
o Denial of benefits of social welfare schemes;
o Denial of entry to temples;
o Non-issue of caste certificates;
o Land grabbing by upper castes;
o Delay in payment of education loan;
o Police inaction on issues relating to problems of Scheduled Castes.
Notices on these cases had been issued in advance to the State Government for its response.
The response of the State Government in cases taken up on the 7th August, 2012, was not very satisfactory and in the absence of a response, many cases could not be disposed of. The complainants had come from distant places. Therefore, in some cases, the State was asked to reimburse the expenses incurred on journey. On the 8th August, 2012, the response showed a marked improvement and replies from the State Government were received in almost all the cases.
In many cases, the State Government took corrective measures on receiving notice from the Commission. These included, issuance of caste certificates, land pattas, retirement benefits, education loan.
The State Government was asked to release education loan and retirement benefits within a fixed time. It was also to take appropriate legal/criminal action and ensure delivery of possession to the patta holders.
In one case, it was found that the graveyard of the Scheduled Castes had been encroached upon by upper caste people and the State had not taken appropriate action. The Commission recomm-ended prosecution of encroachers under Section 3(1)(v) of SC/ST Act, and also recommended prosecution of the negligent government officer under Section 4 of the Act.
In many cases, it was found that the police had filed charge-sheet after investigation of cases of atrocity on SCs, but the financial assistance prescribed by SC/ST (POA) Rules had not been given. The Commission directed the State Government to disburse the financial assistance within a prescribed time.
In many cases, it was observed that the offence against SCs had been diluted in the FIRs and appropriate provision of SC/ST Act was not invoked. In one case, rehabilitation of 45 families which were displaced was recommended.
The Commission was informed that according to the policy of the State Government, no patta can be issued within 32 kms., of Chennai. Some families, which were occupying government lands within 32 kms. were not eligible for issue of patta. The Commission, however, persuaded the State Government to undertake that such families would be not be evicted even though they did not have the patta.
A temple of Adi Dravidars was to be removed for setting up a vetenerary hospital. The Commission recommended and the State undertook that alternative land will be given to the Adi Dravidars for construction of the temple.
There was a complaint regarding a minor girl even though she did not belong to the SC community. This complaint was taken up as a special case. The girl was deaf and dumb and subjected to gang rape. The Commission recommended that adequate financial assistance should be given to her family from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.
After hearing the complainants, the Commission held discussions with the representatives of local NGOs on the 9th August, 2012 to know problems of Scheduled Castes in Tamil Nadu. The following important points were brought to the notice of the Commission:
o Children of Adi Dravidars were being engaged in cleaning of their school premises;
o Funds for an Adi Dravidar School were being misappropriated and the school was in bad shape with poor facilities;
o Dalit students were having difficulty in seeking admission to colleges;
o No safety equipment to manual scavengers, nor any money being provided by the corporation to them to bring cleaning equipment like gloves, mask etc.
o Delay in payment of compensation under SC/ST (POA) Act;
o No regular meeting of vigilance committee as envisaged under SC/ST (POA) Act;
o Protection of rights of human rights defenders;
o District level officials not very keen in implementing SCs welfare schemes;
o The State Government approaches the High Court in matters related to SCs resulting in prolonged litigation and denial of benefits;
o Delay in filing charge-sheets in matters related to atrocities against Scheduled Castes; Magistrate did not pay much heed to this aspect;
o There was no NGO representative in District Monitoring Committees;
o The schools in forest area were far away.
o Tribal people not getting timely permission for cutting trees to exercise their rights on forest land;
o Wrong naming of forest areas as tiger reserve where there were no tigers;
o With 1% reservation for tribals, highly educated people of these communities remained without job;
o Children of Scheduled Castes suffering as Caste Certificates, were not being issued by Tehsildar on the ground that a particular community was not residing in that area.
Later, all the issues, which were brought to the notice of the Commission regarding the problems of Scheduled Castes in Tamil Nadu were taken up by the Chairperson and Members with the senior officers of the State Government at a meeting. Some of these were as follows:
o State should consider setting up of special human rights courts, as their number is only four at present;
o Public prosecutors should be sensitized in pursuing the issues concerning the Scheduled Castes;
o State should ensure that basic implements are provided to the people to put an end to manual scavenging;
o It is incorrect to send persons to his native place to get a Caste Certificate, which is against the spirit of the State Government's resolution which needs to be publicized among Tehsildars;
o Issue land pattas timely;
o Avoid inordinate delay in investigation of cases and court cases;
o Utilize properly all the provisions and clauses of the SC/ST (POA) Act while submitting charge-sheets;
o Apprise officers at District level to adhere to the revised compensation amount instead of sticking to the old slabs;
o Take proactive action to evict encroachers on Dalit lands after issuance of pattas;
o Condition of Adi Dravidar Schools is bad; private institutions can claim the reimbursement of admission fee for SC students from the government without asking them for the money and then reimbursing it after receiving payment from the government as many students of Dalit community cannot make huge payment at the time of admission;
o Take urgent steps to have schools in nearby areas in forest areas.
o Issue related to forest land and tribal people's rights should be resolved.
Justice Balakrishnan said that the Magistrates needed to be sensitized about the Provisions of SC/ST (POA) Act. There is a provision that even prisoners can drop their complaints in boxes placed inside the jails which should be checked by the District Judge.
NHRC Member, Mr. Justice B.C. Patel referring to a particular complaint said that merely a fancy English name or visiting church does not make a person a non-Dalit when the birth certificate clearly mentions the caste of a person as Dalit.
NHRC Member, Mr. Satyabrata Pal observed that the issuance of house pattas to Adi Dravidars was a major problem given that other backward classes were equally entitled to this benefit from the State. On the issue of identity of Adi Dravidars, he said that a Tehsildar's view on caste identification is considered final, which may often be subjective and there being no provision of an appeal against his decision, it becomes a problem for the applicants.
With reference to a case relating to stagnation of secondary teachers, the Commission observed that there was an inherent contradiction in the conditions of service and the rules governing the service. Therefore, it was recommended to the State Government to determine seniority at State level and not at Block level so that the teachers do not stagnate. During Commission's interaction with the State Government, the government assured that the recommendation will be seriously looked into.
The Chairperson and Members also held a media briefing on the outcome of the Chennai open hearing.
Justice Balakrishnan said that the NHRC is conscious of its obligations towards the cause of Scheduled Castes. The K.B. Saxena report, commissioned by the NHRC, observed that despite several laws and schemes in place for the welfare of Scheduled Castes, the delivery mechanism was not up to the mark and that the NHRC needed to organize open hearings of issues concerning problems of Scheduled Castes in different States to improve the situation. Thus, the NHRC is trying to reach as many States as possible to hear the complaints of atrocities against Scheduled Castes. He said that the NHRC's efforts are to help States in good governance and he hoped that the State government officers would help the Commission in discharge of its duty.
On the occasion, Mr. Devendra Nath Sarangi, Chief Secretary, Government of Tamil Nadu said that the State government did not distinguish between any members of society when it came to welfare measures. Free healthcare and free school education up to 12 standard for all were among some such measures.
On the 7th -8th September, 2012, the NHRC heard 317 complaints, which were found fit for inquiry out of more than 1000 complaints it received in response to public notices issued about this open hearing. 168 cases were taken up in Bench No. 1 presided over by Member, Mr. Justice B.C. Patel, and 149 cases were taken up in Bench No. 2 presided over by Member, Mr. Satyabrata Pal. Most common issues raised in complaints were as follows:
o Denial of benefits of social welfare schemes;
o Denial of entry to temples;
o Non-issue of caste certificates;
o Land grabbing by upper castes;
o Delay in payment of education loan;
o Police inaction on issues relating to problems of Scheduled Castes.
Notices on these cases had been issued in advance to the State Government for its response.
The response of the State Government in cases taken up on the 7th August, 2012, was not very satisfactory and in the absence of a response, many cases could not be disposed of. The complainants had come from distant places. Therefore, in some cases, the State was asked to reimburse the expenses incurred on journey. On the 8th August, 2012, the response showed a marked improvement and replies from the State Government were received in almost all the cases.
In many cases, the State Government took corrective measures on receiving notice from the Commission. These included, issuance of caste certificates, land pattas, retirement benefits, education loan.
The State Government was asked to release education loan and retirement benefits within a fixed time. It was also to take appropriate legal/criminal action and ensure delivery of possession to the patta holders.
In one case, it was found that the graveyard of the Scheduled Castes had been encroached upon by upper caste people and the State had not taken appropriate action. The Commission recomm-ended prosecution of encroachers under Section 3(1)(v) of SC/ST Act, and also recommended prosecution of the negligent government officer under Section 4 of the Act.
In many cases, it was found that the police had filed charge-sheet after investigation of cases of atrocity on SCs, but the financial assistance prescribed by SC/ST (POA) Rules had not been given. The Commission directed the State Government to disburse the financial assistance within a prescribed time.
In many cases, it was observed that the offence against SCs had been diluted in the FIRs and appropriate provision of SC/ST Act was not invoked. In one case, rehabilitation of 45 families which were displaced was recommended.
The Commission was informed that according to the policy of the State Government, no patta can be issued within 32 kms., of Chennai. Some families, which were occupying government lands within 32 kms. were not eligible for issue of patta. The Commission, however, persuaded the State Government to undertake that such families would be not be evicted even though they did not have the patta.
A temple of Adi Dravidars was to be removed for setting up a vetenerary hospital. The Commission recommended and the State undertook that alternative land will be given to the Adi Dravidars for construction of the temple.
There was a complaint regarding a minor girl even though she did not belong to the SC community. This complaint was taken up as a special case. The girl was deaf and dumb and subjected to gang rape. The Commission recommended that adequate financial assistance should be given to her family from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund.
After hearing the complainants, the Commission held discussions with the representatives of local NGOs on the 9th August, 2012 to know problems of Scheduled Castes in Tamil Nadu. The following important points were brought to the notice of the Commission:
o Children of Adi Dravidars were being engaged in cleaning of their school premises;
o Funds for an Adi Dravidar School were being misappropriated and the school was in bad shape with poor facilities;
o Dalit students were having difficulty in seeking admission to colleges;
o No safety equipment to manual scavengers, nor any money being provided by the corporation to them to bring cleaning equipment like gloves, mask etc.
o Delay in payment of compensation under SC/ST (POA) Act;
o No regular meeting of vigilance committee as envisaged under SC/ST (POA) Act;
o Protection of rights of human rights defenders;
o District level officials not very keen in implementing SCs welfare schemes;
o The State Government approaches the High Court in matters related to SCs resulting in prolonged litigation and denial of benefits;
o Delay in filing charge-sheets in matters related to atrocities against Scheduled Castes; Magistrate did not pay much heed to this aspect;
o There was no NGO representative in District Monitoring Committees;
o The schools in forest area were far away.
o Tribal people not getting timely permission for cutting trees to exercise their rights on forest land;
o Wrong naming of forest areas as tiger reserve where there were no tigers;
o With 1% reservation for tribals, highly educated people of these communities remained without job;
o Children of Scheduled Castes suffering as Caste Certificates, were not being issued by Tehsildar on the ground that a particular community was not residing in that area.
Later, all the issues, which were brought to the notice of the Commission regarding the problems of Scheduled Castes in Tamil Nadu were taken up by the Chairperson and Members with the senior officers of the State Government at a meeting. Some of these were as follows:
o State should consider setting up of special human rights courts, as their number is only four at present;
o Public prosecutors should be sensitized in pursuing the issues concerning the Scheduled Castes;
o State should ensure that basic implements are provided to the people to put an end to manual scavenging;
o It is incorrect to send persons to his native place to get a Caste Certificate, which is against the spirit of the State Government's resolution which needs to be publicized among Tehsildars;
o Issue land pattas timely;
o Avoid inordinate delay in investigation of cases and court cases;
o Utilize properly all the provisions and clauses of the SC/ST (POA) Act while submitting charge-sheets;
o Apprise officers at District level to adhere to the revised compensation amount instead of sticking to the old slabs;
o Take proactive action to evict encroachers on Dalit lands after issuance of pattas;
o Condition of Adi Dravidar Schools is bad; private institutions can claim the reimbursement of admission fee for SC students from the government without asking them for the money and then reimbursing it after receiving payment from the government as many students of Dalit community cannot make huge payment at the time of admission;
o Take urgent steps to have schools in nearby areas in forest areas.
o Issue related to forest land and tribal people's rights should be resolved.
Justice Balakrishnan said that the Magistrates needed to be sensitized about the Provisions of SC/ST (POA) Act. There is a provision that even prisoners can drop their complaints in boxes placed inside the jails which should be checked by the District Judge.
NHRC Member, Mr. Justice B.C. Patel referring to a particular complaint said that merely a fancy English name or visiting church does not make a person a non-Dalit when the birth certificate clearly mentions the caste of a person as Dalit.
NHRC Member, Mr. Satyabrata Pal observed that the issuance of house pattas to Adi Dravidars was a major problem given that other backward classes were equally entitled to this benefit from the State. On the issue of identity of Adi Dravidars, he said that a Tehsildar's view on caste identification is considered final, which may often be subjective and there being no provision of an appeal against his decision, it becomes a problem for the applicants.
With reference to a case relating to stagnation of secondary teachers, the Commission observed that there was an inherent contradiction in the conditions of service and the rules governing the service. Therefore, it was recommended to the State Government to determine seniority at State level and not at Block level so that the teachers do not stagnate. During Commission's interaction with the State Government, the government assured that the recommendation will be seriously looked into.
The Chairperson and Members also held a media briefing on the outcome of the Chennai open hearing.