Despite the strict laws and guidelines, the cases of crime and harassment against SC and ST are continuously coming to fore in Haryana which is a matter of serious concern. In this context, the officials statistics of last two years has revealed that more than 130 incidents are being reported every month in Haryana. As many as As many as 1633 and 1378 case of crime against SC, ST reported in 2022 and from Jan 2023 to Nov 2023 in Haryana amounting to a total of 3011 cases.
Hisar District emerges on the top in terms pf maximum cases reported against the SC and ST in the state. Apart from this, there are about half a dozen districts where from 100 to 175 cases confirmed in aforementioned period. Notably, the issue continues to echo in the assembly as well for a long time. Out of the total cases, as many as 1378 reported in year 2023 till the month of the November, with an average of 125 cases a month. Out of these, 1338 cases have been registered under SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) ACT with IPC cases while remaining 40 fall in SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) ACT without IPC. Similarly, out of the 1633 cases surfaced in 2022, as many as 1535 and 98 fall in aforesaid categories respectively with an annual average of 136 cases a month.
In continuation to this it is worth stating that as many as 549 cases- 319 and 230 in 2022 and 2023 respectively, of crime against SC/ST reported in Hisar district followed by 175, 173, 158, 150,150 and 135 cases of the same nature were reported in Palwal, Karnal, Fatehabad, Faridabad, Kurukshetra and Rewari respectively. Similarly, Ambala, Sonipat, Panchkula, Yamunanagar, Kaitlhal, Rohtak and Jhajjar witnessed 126, 121, 118, 115, 110, 108, 104 and 102 cases of crime against SC/ST in the state during a period of 23 months from January 2022 to November 2023 respectively while the remaining cases reported in other districts.Pertaining to the context, the Punjab-Haryana High Court, while giving an important decision, had made it clear recently that insulting or threatening any person within the boundary walls or inside house with no outsider rather than public place, is not a crime under the SC/ST Act. Unless someone is insulted intentionally in a public place, it is not a crime. With these observations, the High Court granted anticipatory bail to the petitioner in this case. While observing the Act, the High Court mentioned that to make a person convicted for punishment, it is necessary to be in a public place or in public view at the time of the incident.
