The court affirmed the illegality of community wise Panchayat practices and ordered prohibition to uphold legal protections for affected citizens.

ORAL ORDER

(PER: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SURAJ GOVINDARAJ)

1. The petitioners in W.P.No.202707/2019 are before this Court seeking for the following reliefs:

i. Issue of a writ in the nature of mandamus, and direction to the State Government and Respondents Police stop to the Community wise Panchayat in Baratagi L.T.-5 Village should not conduct the Katti Panchayat and take the lan in their own hands and may direct the Respondent Police should not take the punitive action against the respondent as per vide (Annexure-F) issued by Police Rural Police Station on 03.12.2018 as well as declare Community wise Panchayat is illegal in Baratagi L.T.-5 Village and in overall State.

ii. Issue such other appropriate order or direction as this Hon’ble Court deems to be fit grant other reliefs under the circumstances of this case in the interests of justice and equity.

2. The petitioners in W.P.No.202706/2019 are before this Court seeking for the following reliefs:

a. Issue of a writ in the nature of mandamus, and directing to the Respondents should not practice Katti Panchayat in respective Village and declare Annexure-A is null and void which is issued by the Respondents, the petitioner liberty curtained by the Respondent on their own moral philosophy, hence may direct the state government to take proper legal action against those person who will be going to conduct Katti Panchayat (Nasab Hasab) Panchayat in respective Village in over all Karnataka State.

b. Issue such other appropriate order or direction as this Hon’ble Court deems to be fit grant other reliefs under the circumstances of this case in the interests of justice and equity.

3. The grievance of the petitioners was that the community members of the petitioners’ respective Villagers, were conducting Katti Panchayat taking the law into their own hands and thereby ostracising the petitioners and several others.

4. This aspect of ostracising and conducting Katti Panchayat etc., had been dealt with by the Hon’ble Apex Court in the case of Shakti Vahini vs. Union of India , [2018 7 SCC 192] . However an enquiry being made with the State authorities as to whether the said directions of the Hon’ble Apex Court had been implemented more particularly as that contained in Para 55 thereof, the response received was that the implementation has not happened.

5. In that view of the matter, this Court had issued several directions from time to time.

6. The submission of the learned Additional Advocate General as regards the compliances have also been recorded from time to time. Today learned Additional Advocate General submits that training has been provided to all the officers. The copy of the judgement has been translated into Kannada and provided to all the officers. The concerned stakeholders have been sensitised to act in terms of the decision of the Hon’ble Apex Court in Shakti Vahini’s case (supra). His further submission is that no Katti Panchayat would be allowed to be conducted within the State of Karnataka more particularly in the Districts of Vijayapura and Yadagiri and if any such action is taken by any Panchayat and/or person, necessary punitive action would be taken by the respondent/State so as to safeguard the interest of the common citizen more particularly the members belonging to Scheduled Tribe against whom such Katti Panchayats are being conducted.

7. Placing his submission on record, the Writ Petitions stand disposed. Liberty being reserved to anybody aggrieved to initiate appropriate proceedings if there is non-compliance by the State of the direction issued by the Hon’ble Apex Court in Shakti Vahini’s case (supra).