The court established the principle that the ingredients of the offenses under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act must be clearly established and supported by evidence.

JUDGMENT :

VIBHA KANKANWADI, J.

1. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. Heard learned Advocates for the parties finally, by consent.

2. Present application has been filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for quashment of the First Information Report as well as the entire proceedings against the applicants.

3. Present respondent No.2 is the informant, who had lodged First Information Report vide Crime No.389/2020 on 24.09.2020 with M.I.D.C. Latur Police Station, Dist. Latur, for the offence punishable under Sections 323, 504, 506 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and under Sections 3(1)(r), 3(1)(s) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (In short, “the Atrocities Act”) in respect of an incident that had allegedly taken place on 19.08.2020.

4. Heard learned Advocate Mr. K.A. Kadam for the applicants, learned APP Mr. B.V. Virdhe for respondent No.1 and learned Advocate Mr. G.G. Suryawanshi for respondent No.2.

5. It has been vehemently submitted on behalf of the applicants that the applicant No.1 is a Medical Practitioner. He runs hospital by name “Gayatri Hospital” at Latur and he is reputed in the vicinity. Applicant Nos.2 and 3 are his employees. Applicant No.2 belongs to backward community and applicant No.3 belongs to N.T. community. Respondent No.2 was working in Gayatri Hospital for the month of May, 2020 and June, 2020. He had worked only for 20 days in the month of July, 2020. The State Government granted permission to the said hospital for treating the patients of Covid-19 and thereafter the respondent No.2 remained absent for about a month. According to the applicants, the respondent No.2 along with another person came to the cabin of applicant No.1 at about 1.00 p.m. on 19.08.2020 and started demanding amount of Rs.50,000/- for educational purpose of his children. The applicant No.1 told him that since he had not worked, he will not pay the amount to him. The respondent No.2 went outside the cabin of applicant No.1 and returned after about five minutes along with stones kept in his handkerchief. He assaulted the applicant No.1 severely, as a result of which the applicant No.1 got his hand fractured and serious injury to his head. The applicant No.1 lodged First Information Report vide Crime No.352/2020 against the present respondent No.2 on the same day i.e. on 19.08.2020, for the offence punishable under Sections 325, 324, 504, 506, 188, 269, 270 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code and under Sections 2, 3 and 4 of the Epidemic Diseases Act as well as Section 4 of the M.M.S. Act, 2010 with M.I.D.C. Police Station, Latur.

6. The learned Advocate appearing for the applicants has further submitted that in order to give a counterblast to the aforesaid First Information Report lodged by the applicant No.1 against the respondent No.2, respondent No.2 lodged the impugned First Information Report vide Crime No.389/2020. The allegations in the said First Information Report are false. There was no question of abusing the respondent No.2 in the name of caste by the applicant No.1. Another fact, that is, required to be noted is that even as per the said First Information Report the alleged incident had taken place in the cabin of the applicant No.1 and the cabin cannot be said to be a “place into public view” as contemplated under Section 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s) of the Atrocities Act. The delay in lodging the First Information Report has not been explained at all, which is more than 1½ month. There was no eye witness to the incident, much less from a different community. As per the complaint, the son of the respondent No.2 was along with him and he was bound to support the father. Now, the charge sheet has been filed and if we consider the statements of the other witnesses viz. Sherkhan Gafarkhan Pathan, Uttam Shyamrao Chavan, then, it can be seen that after the informant as well as his son were allegedly running and it was found that they were