Maharashtra will soon set up special courts in every divisional headquarters in the State to ensure the speedy trial of cases under the Protection of Civil Rights (PCR) Act and the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. This decision was taken at a periodic review meeting on PCR by Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Monday.
Official sources said the social justice department would prepare a proposal to be acted upon by the High Court.
Around 700 cases were disposed of in 2010, the rate of conviction being 4.52 per cent, with 34 convictions. This was an improvement on the 2.91 per cent last year. The State did not have a high rate of conviction of cases under the Act since there were no special courts for atrocity cases. Even the Khairlanji case was tried in an ad hoc sessions court, at Bhandara.
Union Minister for Social Justice Mukul Wasnik had held a review meeting in the State last week on the status of the implementation of the Atrocities Act and the PCR act. He had said that over 5,000 atrocity cases were pending in the State and that the government was asked to set up special courts in every division.
