‘Crimes against SCs in Gujarat increased five times last year’
NEW DELHI: Crimes against Dalits in Gujarat went up by over five times in 2015 over the previous year, according to official statistics circulated for a review meeting on Thursday by the National Commission for Scheduled Castes.
In absolute terms, Gujarat’s 6,655 reported cases of atrocities against scheduled crimes is next only to Bihar that tops the list of states with 7,121 cases.
Gujarat, however, had the highest rate of atrocities against Dalits in 2015. It recorded 163 crimes for every one lakh SC population in the state, as compared to 43 in Bihar.
Another BJP-ruled state, Chhattisgarh, also showed a spurt in crimes against SCs. About 3,000 cases relating to atrocities on Dalits were registered last year in the state. It reported a crime rate of 92.
The agenda notes for the meeting to review implementation of safeguards for Dalits flagged the statistics to the two states, pointing that the sudden increase with respect to Gujarat and Chhattisgarh was “abnormal”. In 2014, Gujarat had reported 1,130 crimes against Dalits and Chhattisgarh 1,060.
“It can be seen from the analysis... that Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat and Chhattisgarh are the states that deserve special attention,” the document said.
Addressing the meeting, social justice minister Thaawar Chand Gehlot said there had been a rise in criminal cases of atrocities against people of reserved class.
“We feel such incidents should not happen. It is a matter of concern for us. If at all such cases happen, states must ensure speedy and prompt justice to victims,” the minister said.