The National Schedule Caste Commission (NCSC) will direct the Cyberabad police to act on Prevention of SC/ST Atrocities (PoA) charges slapped on five persons, including Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Hyderabad P. Appa Rao in connection with the Rohith Vemula suicide case, NCSC Chairman P.L. Punia said on Wednesday.
The Commission’s direction would be based on Guntur District Collector’s report on Vemula’s caste status, Mr. Punia said.
As the Guntur District Collector has certified that Vemula’s caste was Hindu Mala (Scheduled Caste), “the Telangana police will have to act on atrocity charges pressed against the accused in the PoA case, failing which they will be in violation of constitutional provisions and the law”, Mr. Punia told The Hindu .
“In the meeting which is to be convened next week, the Commission will table the report and ask the Cyberabad police to act on it,” he said adding that the Guntur Collector had sent a copy of the report to both the investigating officer and Cyberabad Commissioner C.V. Anand.
Highest authority
A District Collector is the highest authority in issuing the caste certificate. “The Collector’s certification in this case was based on the data and documents provided by Revenue Divisional Officer and Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Guntur. As per the documents, a permanent Caste certificate was issued to Rohith Vemula by the Guntur Tahsildar in 2005. His caste was always recorded as Mala (SC) and with the Collector certifying this, the police should go ahead with the proceedings,” Mr. Punia said adding that the NCSC is legally bound to ask the police an explanation if a PoA case goes unattended.
The NCSC received the Collector’s report last week, Mr. Punia confirmed.
