'No civil dispute cases can be converted into criminal proceedings under SC/ST Act': Supreme Court

The ruling came as P Bhaktavatchalam, who belongs to the SC community and had constructed a house in a vacant plot, knocked the otters of the apex court over a dispute with a member of the upper community.

The dispute started after a member of the upper community started constructing a temple adjacent to his plot.

The temple patrons had filed a complaint against Bhaktavatchalam alleging that his house was constructed violating norms and had put up unauthorised constructions on the ground and first floors.

In response, Bhaktavatchalam filed a complaint under the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and alleged that the temple was being constructed encroaching on the common pathway over the sewage and water pipelines to harass him and deprive him of peace as he belong to the SC community.

A magisterial court at Egmore, Chennai, had earlier summoned the accused, who was allegedly blamed for breaching the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

When he appealed against the summons, the Madra High Court did not allow him relief.

A Supreme Court bench of Justices M R Shah and Krishna Murari allowed the appeal and quashed the appeal issued against the accused people.

They said that a purely civil case was being attempted to be converted to a case under the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

“It seems that the private civil dispute between the parties is converted into criminal proceedings," Justice Shah noted.

The judges called the act a sheer abuse of the law.

“From the material on record, we are satisfied that no case for the offences under the SC and the ST Act is made out, even prima facie. "Therefore we are of the firm view that in the facts and circumstances of the case, the HC ought to have quashed the criminal proceedings in the exercise of powers under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure," the judges said,

"The order passed by HC, is unsustainable and the same deserves to be quashed and set aside and criminal proceedings initiated against appellants deserve to be quashed and set aside,” the bench said.