SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir registered 20 cases under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, in 2024, while 14 cases remained pending trial at the end of the year, the Union Government informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.
According to data presented by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, four cases were charge-sheeted in JK during 2024, while no conviction was recorded under the Act during the year.
The figures show that cases registered in JK declined marginally from 21 in 2023 to 20 in 2024, while the number of cases pending trial increased from 11 to 14 during the same period. In 2023, five cases were charge-sheeted and no conviction was recorded.
In 2022, JK had registered seven cases, of which four were charge-sheeted. Six cases were pending trial at the end of that year, with no conviction recorded.
At the national level, 65,646 cases were registered under the Act in 2024, while 52,868 cases were charge-sheeted and 7,050 cases resulted in convictions. As many as 3,92,006 cases were pending trial at the end of 2024.
The Ministry said 217 Exclusive Special Courts have been established in 15 States and Union Territories for speedy trial of atrocity cases. However, 13 States—Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttarakhand and West Bengal—have not established Exclusive Special Courts.
Under Section 14 of the Act, State Governments are required, with the concurrence of the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court, to establish Exclusive Special Courts for one or more districts. In districts where the number of cases is lower, a Court of Session may be specified as a Special Court for trying offences under the Act.
The Centre also released Rs 495.29 crore in 2024-25 under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme for implementation of the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, with 99,965 victims provided relief.
The corresponding Central assistance stood at Rs 535.30 crore in 2023-24, benefiting 79,667 victims, and Rs 392.71 crore in 2022-23, when 88,172 victims received relief.
