Will not allow any dilution in SC/ST Act: Rajnath Singh
New Delhi, July 18 : Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday assured the Rajya Sabha that the government will not allow any dilution in any of the provisions of Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Caste Prevention of Atrocities Act.
"The protection available to SC/STs in the Constitution cannot be snatched away either by any organisation or by any individual," Singh assured the Upper House while replying to supplementaries during Question Hour.
He said the NDA government had taken every step to strengthen the act and would not allow anyone to dilute it.
"In 2015 our government not only made amendments into the act to make it more effective but also changed the rules to strengthen it," he said.
Responding to a query over low rate of conviction of crime against of SCs and STs community, Singh said the government had established 194 Exclusive Special Courts for speedy disposal of such cases.
"The rate of conviction will increase," he said. The government also rejected the claims that there has been any increase in cases of crime against SCs and SCs.
"There has been no increase in the cases of crime against SCs and STs," Minister of State for Home Affairs Hansraj Ahir said quoting data from the National Crime Records Bureau.
He was responding to a query by Congress member Shamsher Singh Dullon, who alleged that crime against SCs and STs had increased in the last four years.
"The government is serious to stop atrocities against SCs and STs," Ahir said.
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Notorious murder convict who broke out of Kannur jail shifted to Viyyur prison
Kannur(Kerala) (PTI): Govindachamy, a notorious convict serving life term in the sensational 2011 Soumya murder case, was on Saturday shifted to the Viyyur central jail in Thrissur district of Kerala, a day after he broke out of Kannur prison and was caught several hours later.
The order to shift Govindachamy alias Govindaswamy (41), who is missing his left hand, to Viyyur came late Friday night, but it was decided to move him in the morning, police said.
He was taken to Thrissur early Saturday morning amidst heavy security, it said.
Govindachamy broke out of Kannur Central Jail on Friday between 4.15 am and 6.30 am and was caught from within the city limits by around 9.30 am.
A case was registered in connection with his jailbreak and he was produced before a judicial magistrate and remanded to judicial custody for 14 days.
Following the jailbreak, three prison officers of Kannur Central Jail were suspended with immediate effect, amidst allegations from various quarters that the convict had inside help in his escape.
The opposition Congress had slammed the government over the incident. It termed the government "incompetent" and alleged that "inside help" was provided for the jailbreak. It also demanded a CBI probe into the incident.
Soumya, a 23-year-old woman from Manjakkad near Shornur, was raped and murdered allegedly by Govindachamy while travelling on a passenger train from Ernakulam to Shornur on 1 February 2011. Govindachamy was convicted in this case.
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