Theme: Citizen Rights & Constitution

Investigation of Cases

If a crime under this special law committed against a member of the scheduled caste or scheduled tribe groups has been reported to the police, the investigation for this must be done by a police officer who is at the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police or above.

As per the law, the DSP must complete his investigation on top priority within thirty days. The report from this investigation must be submitted to the Superintendent of the Police, who will further submit it to the Director-General of Police of that State.(( Rule 7, Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Rules, 1995.))

Free Meals for Children in Schools (Mid-day Meal Scheme)

The law provides that all students between the ages of six to fourteen years who enrol and attend the school studying between I to VIII classes shall be entitled to nutritious meals at no cost. The funds for such meals shall be provided by the state government. However, implementation of the scheme and monitoring of the quality and preparation of the meal is overseen by the School Management Committee.((  Rule 7, Mid Day Meal Rules, 2015.))These meals should be provided on all days except school holidays. The place of service for such meals is at school only.

If for any reason, the mid-day meal is not provided to the child on any day, a food security allowance consisting of food grains and money shall be paid by the State Government to every child by the 15th of next month.((  Rule 3, Mid Day Meal Rules, 2015.)) The allowance includes food grains and money. It shall be based on the number of food grains entitled to the child and the cooking cost prevailing in the state. Children who voluntarily do not consume the mid-day meal, however, shall not be entitled to such allowance.((  Rule 9, Mid Day Meal Rules, 2015.))

Read more on Frequently Asked Questions on Mid Day Meals on the Nyaaya Blog, given here.

FIR, Arrest and Bail

When an FIR is filed for a crime or atrocity committed against a member of the scheduled castes or scheduled tribes, no preliminary inquiry needs to be conducted by the investigation officer before the said filing.

The investigation officer does not require any prior approval of his seniors for arresting any person accused of committing a crime under this law either.

Moreover, a person who fears arrest for crimes that he may or may not have committed under this law cannot file for anticipatory bail.(( Section 18A, Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.))

Qualifications of Teachers

The National Council for Teacher Education prescribes the qualifications for teachers in India. One of the essential qualifications for a person to be eligible for appointment as a teacher in any of the schools is that he/she should pass the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) which will be conducted by the appropriate Government.  Other than this, there are different qualifications required for teaching different classes.(( Govt of India, Ministry of Human Resource Development, F.No. 61-03/20/2010/NCTE/(N&S) (23rd August 2010) available at http://righttoeducation.in/sites/default/files/Notification%20of%20NCTE%20for%20the%20minimum%20qualification%20for%20a%20person%20to%20be%20eligible%20for%20appointment%20as%20a%20School%20teacher.pdf)) 

Teachers of Class 1-5

Qualifications include:

  • Senior Secondary with at least 50% marks and a 2-year diploma in elementary education or
  • 4 year Bachelor in Elementary Education or a 2-year diploma in Education (special education).

Teachers of Class 6-8:

Qualifications include:

  • B.A/ B.Sc degree and a 2-year diploma in elementary education. Or,  B.A/ B.Sc degree with at least 50% marks and a 1-year bachelor in education or a 1-year B.Ed (special education)
  • Or, a senior secondary with at least 50% marks and 4 year Bachelor in Elementary Education or 4-year B.A/B.Sc.Ed

Steps for States to ensure fulfilment of the rights

If you are a victim of atrocities, dependent of the victim or a witness to the atrocities, the State Government must ensure that you are given: 

  • a copy of the FIR free of cost
  • immediate relief in cash or kind
  • necessary protection from intimidation and harassment 
  • relief in respect of death, injury or damage to property
  • food, water, clothing, shelter, medical aid, transport facilities or daily allowance
  • maintenance expenses to the victims and their dependents 
  • information about your rights at the time of making complaints and registering the FIR
  • Information about necessary precautions to be taken at the time of medical examination
  • information about the relief amount 
  • information about the dates and place of investigation and trial
  • adequate briefing regarding the case and legal aid wherever needed

Education for Children Belonging to Disadvantaged Groups

It is the duty of the government and the local authorities to ensure that children from disadvantaged groups are not discriminated against and are able to complete their elementary education. Parents of children belonging to disadvantaged groups should get representation in the School Management Committees in proportion to the number of such students enrolled.1 Specified category schools and unaided private schools are mandated to admit in first class (Class 1), children belonging to weaker sections and disadvantaged groups to a minimum of 25% of the class size.2

Children with HIV

While children belonging to disadvantaged groups earlier did not extend to children with HIV, the Supreme Court of India ordered that the State Governments should consider adding children living with or affected by HIV to disadvantaged groups by way of notification given here. (( Naz Foundation India Trust v. Union of India, (2018) 11 SCC 547.)) Consequently, children with HIV are counted under disadvantaged groups for the Right to Education in Union Territories of Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. (( Ministry Of Human Resource Development (Department Of School Education And Literacy) Notification New Delhi, the 18th May 2017, available at https://mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/upload_document/rte_notification.pdf)) Karnataka also includes children with HIV under disadvantaged groups. More states may include children with HIV or affected by HIV in the disadvantaged groups for the purpose of RTE.(( Rule 2(e), Karnataka Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Rules, 2012.))

Children belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes

Children belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes are also included under the category of disadvantaged groups in the RTE law. Certain states in India give priority to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in case of 25% admissions to disadvantaged categories in specific categories and unaided private schools. For example, the state of Haryana3  provides for a reservation of 5% seats out of the 25% admissions for Scheduled Castes. Similarly, the state of Karnataka has 7.5% and 1.5% seats EWS seats reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes respectively.4

Children with disabilities

All children, who are citizens of India have a right to education, including children with disabilities. The Constitution of India provides that nobody can be denied admission into any educational institution based on their religion, race, caste or language.(( Article 29(2), The Constitution of India, 1950.)) Moreover, the State is directed to provide free and compulsory education for all until the age of 14 years and no child can be denied admission to any educational institution maintained by state funds on grounds such as religion, race, caste or language.(( Article 45, The Constitution of India, 1950.))

A child with a disability has special rights for getting an education. Some of these are:

  1. The child can get free education till she turns 18.5
  2. The child can get special books and equipment that s/he needs for free from the government.

Also, the government has to take special steps to help children with disabilities get an education including:

  • Provision of safe transport facilities to enable them to attend school and complete elementary education.6
  • Materials for special learning and educational support. (( Rule 9, The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Rules, 2010.))
  • Provision of scholarships, part-time classes, informal education and make it easier for such children to give exams etc. A child with 80% disability or two or more disabilities can choose to be educated at home.(( Section 17, The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.))
  1. Section 21, The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. [↩]
  2. Section 12(1)(c), The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. [↩]
  3. Rule 7(4), Haryana Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Rules, 2011. [↩]
  4. Admission of Children Belonging To Disadvantaged Group And Weaker Section Under Rte, Circular, Government Of Karnataka Available At http://www.schooleducation.kar.nic.in/Prypdfs/rte/RTECircular18313.pdf. [↩]
  5. Section 31, Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016. [↩]
  6. Rule 6(7), The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Rules, 2010. [↩]

Precautionary and preventive measures to be taken by States

The law requires special measures to be taken by the State Governments to prevent atrocities against members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes,(( Rule 3, Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocity) Rules, 1995.)) such as:

  • Identify areas where crimes and atrocities are likely to occur or reoccur.
  • Schedule visits of the District Magistrate and police officer to identified areas for reviewing the law and order situation there.
  • If necessary, cancel the arms license of any person in the identified area and have them deposit their arms in the government armory. Members of SCs and STs, their families and employees are exempted from this.
  • Provide arms licenses to members of SCs and STs to ensure their safety and that of their properties, only if deemed necessary.
  • Set up a vigilance and monitoring committee to suggest effective measures to implement the provisions of this special law.
  • Set up awareness centres and organise workshops to educate people belonging to SCs and STs about their rights and protections available to them. This can also be done by encouraging NGOs to hold such workshops by providing them with financial and other assistance. 
  • Deploy special police forces in areas identified as those where atrocities against members of SCs and STs are committed.

 

SC/ST Protection Cells

The law requires State governments to set up SC and ST Protection Cells at their headquarters. This cell is headed by the Director of Police and Inspector General of Police of the State.(( Rule 8, Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Rules, 1995.))

The SC/ST Cells are supposed to:

  • Conduct surveys of the identified area
  • Maintain public order and tranquility in the identified area
  • Recommend deployment of special police force or setting up of a special police force in an identified area
  • Investigate about the probable causes leading to an offence under this special law
  • Restore the feeling of security amongst the members of SCs and STs
  • Inform the nodal and special officer about the law and order situation in an identified area
  • Enquire about the investigation and spot inspections conducted by various officers
  • Enquire about actions taken by the Superintendent of Police in cases where the police refused to register an FIR
  • Enquire about the wilful negligence of public servants 
  • Review the position of cases registered under this law