Taking suo motu cognisance of the atrocities against Adivasi women committed by the police, the National Commission for the Scheduled Tribes has issued a notice to the Director- General of Police, Chhattisgarh, instructing him to lodge a formal complaint against the accused police officials under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities Act), 1989.
The issue was highlighted in a report titled ‘ >Chhattisgarh’s torture cells exposed ’ published in The Hindu on August 24, 2015. The story detailed the rape and torture of Kawasi Hidme at the hands of the police, and her illegal detention for seven years in Chhattisgarh prisons.
In a letter dated October 1, the Commission notes that an offence has been committed under Section 3(1) and Section 3(2) of the SC/ST (POA) Act and recommended various steps for redress of the grievance. This includes lodging of well-documented FIR citing relevant clauses of the SC/ST (POA) Act, and IPC sections. The District Magistrate/District Collector and the District Superintendent of Police have been instructed to visit the place of occurrence of atrocity and take adequate measures for protection of victims and their family. The letter instructs the police to promptly arrest the accused.
The Commission has also set a deadline for investigating the case within 30 days. Further, it instructs the DGP to file a charge sheet in the special court set up to try SC/ST atrocity cases. It has demanded that the victim be provided adequate legal aid and also police protection along with witnesses in the case.
Despite repeated attempts over phone and email, Chhattisgarh DGP A.N. Upadhyay did not respond to queries on action taken on the matter.
