http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Public-hearing-on-atrocities-against-SC-ST-today/290426/
Public hearing on atrocities against SC/ST today Express news service Posted online: Monday , March 31, 2008 at 01:01:24 Ahmedabad, March 30 With the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act failing to bear much fruit in Gujarat, the Centre for Dalit Human Rights of Navsarjan Trust, a city-based NGO, will hold a public hearing for a better implementation of the almost two-decade old Act on Monday. The hearing, to be held at the Town Hall here, will have the victims of atrocities describe the crimes committed against them and the obstacles they face while navigating through the state's judicial system. A seven-member jury, comprising representatives from the police, judiciary, Dalit rights activists and scribes will hear the stories. The jury will make recommendations to the state government on measures, which can be implemented to safeguard against the failures of the Act. Dinesh Parmar, legal director of the NGO, said that at every step in their fight for rights, the Dalits face obstacles placed in their paths "by the agencies responsible for ensuring their rights." "This public hearing will target to provide the government and the citizens a snapshot of those obstacles and create pressure on the state government to effectively enforce the Act in the state," he added. He further said: "Despite the passage of the Act nearly two decades ago, Dalits remain effectively uprooted from a long list of atrocities committed against them by their upper caste neighbours." "While it is commonly argued that such atrocities continue as centuries old discrimination cannot be eliminated over night, this argument loses sight of the significant role played by the state machinery in perpetuating atrocities against one of the most vulnerable segments of Indian society," he added.
