Mumbai, July 3 (SocialNews.XYZ) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday directed authorities to increase the conviction rate in cases registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
He gave these instructions during a meeting of the State-Level Vigilance and Monitoring Committee, constituted to oversee the implementation of the Atrocities Act.
Fadnavis also directed that the performance of government prosecutors in securing convictions under such special laws should be explicitly noted and factored into their official evaluations.
The meeting was attended by Member of Parliament (MP) Hemant Savra along with several Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) committee members.
Pointing out that the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) contains provisions allowing for settlement or compounding of a case twice, the Chief Minister stated that a proposal should be submitted to introduce similar reforms in the state's implementation of the law.
He emphasised that special laws should restrict compounding to a maximum of two instances to ensure that criminals do not escape punishment.
Furthermore, the Chief Minister announced that fast-track courts should be set up in districts that record a high number of Atrocity cases. These courts will expedite trials, ensuring that victims receive swift justice within a short span from the date of filing the complaint.
The Chief Minister directed the Home Department's 'MARVEL' institute to analyse the root causes behind low conviction rates, focusing on issues like weak evidence, broken chains of events, and hostile witnesses. Based on this study, a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) should be developed to guide cases seamlessly from registration to the trial stage.
Since Sub-Divisional Police Officers (SDPOs) serve as the investigating authorities under this Act, the Chief Minister stressed that upcoming state-wide workshops must place a strong focus on training officers at the SDPO level.
Additionally, in alignment with BNS provisions, court hearings for these cases should be video-recorded to curb the issue of witnesses turning hostile, he said.
Fadnavis highlighted that districts like Solapur, Ahilyanagar, Parbhani, Nanded, and Yavatmal report a higher volume of cases under the Atrocities Act.
He directed the police administration to investigate the underlying reasons behind these numbers, conduct deep inquiries, and submit a detailed report. He added that false cases should be filtered out post-investigation and must not be registered.
During the trial of heinous crimes such as murder, rape, and dacoity registered under this Act, strict measures must be taken to protect witnesses. For this purpose, a dedicated Witness Protection Program should be implemented.
The Chief Minister ordered district authorities to enhance communication and coordination with government prosecutors for the effective enforcement of the law. Workshops should be organised to train all administrative and law enforcement wings involved in its execution.
To maintain strict oversight, high-level review meetings will be held twice a year at six-month intervals – one chaired by the Chief Minister at the state level, and another chaired by the Director General of Police (DGP).
Source: IANS
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