December 6 is memorable in India and South Africa. On this day, we lost Dr Ambedker and Nelson Mandela. Both have been awarded Bharat Ratna. They fought against two most visible sources of discrimination and exploitation named caste and race.
They advocated civil liberties and human rights for all human beings. Caste based discrimination is a major issue in South Asia which affects the human rights of about 26 crore of people. India is home to about 20 crore people belonging to caste discriminated communities.
Dalits constitute about one fifth of the total population of Odisha and along with adivasis, they are almost half of the population. In spite of constitutional mandate, institutional mechanism and special provisions and schemes, untouchability and atrocity are major issues of concern in our State.
During the last 12 years from 2001 to 2012, 24,796 atrocity cases against SCs and STs have been registered in different police stations of the State out of which 18,446 are against SCs and 6,350 are against STs. The nature of atrocity includes 1,002 rape cases (SC574 + ST 428), 264 murder cases (SC 158 +ST106), and rest of the cases are house burning, arson and other crimes. The situation of women in general is worst in the State. It is reported that the number of registered cases under rape from 2001 to 2012 is 11,430. The National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) data shows that 7,780 cases of atrocity against SCs were pending in different courts of the State for trial till 2012. The conviction rate is 6.3 per cent. These cases are booked under Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 and SCs and STs Prevention of Atrocity Act, 1989.These two laws are primarily addressing the issues of untouchability and caste-based discrimination and atrocities against SCs and STs under Article-15 and 17 of the Constitution of India that speaks about protection against discrimination on the ground of caste and ethnicity.
India is signatory to international conventions like Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR-1948) and Conventions against Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) and Torture. PCR and POA Acts have provided institutional mechanism like special courts, legal aid, help line, monitoring committees, relief and compensation and rehabilitation majors to address the issues with the objective to protect the vulnerable sections of our society and ensure justice.
Since 2000, the State Government in concurrence with the Chief Justice of the High Court of Odisha specifies the courts of districts session judge and additional district sessions judges as special court for trial of the offence under these two Acts. Very recently, three special courts have been set up in Baleswar, Bolangir and Cuttack for this, along with 596 legal retainers appointed under the legal Service Authorities Act, 1987 to facilitate the process.
The public prosecutors appointed in all districts also have a major role in the process. As per the provisions, the victims and witnesses and their accompanier are entitled to get travel and other allowances during trial and hearings. The Home Department has setup Human Rights Protection Cell (HRPC) headed by IG police specially to look into the investigation. There are State level vigilance and monitoring committee headed by the Chief Minister and district level vigilance and monitoring committee headed by the District Collector to periodically review the process of implementation.
There are two constitutional bodies like National Commission for Scheduled Castes and National Commission for Scheduled Tribes along with statutory bodies such as National Human Rights Commission and State Human Rights Commission who are supposed to be proactive in the matter of SCs, STs, women and children who are most marginalised sections of our society.
In many States there are also existence of State level SC and ST commissions but the Government of Odisha has not yet thought about it. It is also unfortunate that often such bodies are being used for petty political purpose by the ruling parties.
Still we have the worst from of untouchability practice in the rural areas and atrocities in thousands, which deny a life with dignity and prevent democratic and dignified access to common property resources, public places and basic services. Whenever the victim seeks protection and justice from the State, in most instances, FIR is not registered by concerned police stations. In many cases, SC victims are forced to compromise at the FIR Stage. In most of the cases, the SC victims are threatened with false cases. Even if the FIR is registered, stipulated sections and sub sections of SCs & STs (PoA) Act, 1989 are not invoked in the FIR. It has been reported in many accusations that the police stations are not accepting FIR from victims by the pressure of local upper caste.
Development is not possible without protection to the marginalised section of our society. These sections of people are not organised.
There are also victims of the same social system, cultural practices and caste mindset, which divide them into a number of sub castes and lead to absence of social unity among themselves. The political and economic reservation helps a few of them in terms of representation in the legislative, judiciary and the executive but it has not adequately contributed to minimise age old discrimination in social life.
Their representation is also not adequately reflected in all spheres and they suffer exclusion. Many of the reservation beneficiaries are not involved in addressing the issues of social discrimination and atrocities. Political representatives are just like employees of their party bosses and not opening their mouth because of the fear of losing tickets in the next election.
The employees are more interested in fighting discrimination in their own sphere and not relating with issues of the common people in communities. The privatisation process in health and education sphere has encroached upon the welfare role of the State, which largely affects the poorer sections. These low caste and poorer sections face the burden of unemployment and natural calamities like flood, cyclone, drought and disaster.
The struggle for survival is more intense which are manifested in the form of atrocities when they demand for minimum wages, access to resources, land, equal access to the Government schemes, public places, business, trade and to social life and socio-cultural functions. The women of so-called low caste, and poor families are more vulnerable in this situation and prone to inhuman exploitation in the absence of a strong protection mechanism and culture of dignity of human beings.
Thousands of people from rural areas have been migrating to different parts of the country in search of livelihood and more than that to avoid discrimination and atrocities. The atrocities against low caste and social discrimination in villages are one of the most potential reasons of distress migration. There is no data about such migration and forced displacement.
Therefore intervening in the issues of atrocities is highly essential and carries significance in the context of inclusive development. The non-functioning of State mechanism and democratic institutions built for the purpose is a matter of concern for all who believe in human dignity, rule of law and democracy.
Political parties, CSOs, Dalit, Adivasi, and women organizations in the State need to direct all their interventions putting the human rights violation issues in centre as protection will pave the way to development.
(The writer can be contacted at ojaabbsr@gmail.com)