LUCKNOW: In a landmark judgment aimed at curbing misuse of SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, a special SC/ST Court in Lucknow Thursday convicted a woman for making a false police complaint in Aug 2019, following which an FIR was filed, and sentenced her to 3 years and 6 months of jail.The court also ruled that no compensation under the Act would be granted merely on the basis of FIR registration. Relief would now be considered only after a chargesheet was filed, and a prima facie case was established in the matter.Special judge (SC/ST Act) Vivekanand Sharan Tripathi said, “The practice of lodging false SC/ST cases to obtain government compensation is increasing and must be checked immediately.”In a 30-page order, the judge observed filing of an FIR alone did not constitute a prima facie case. It noted the legislature never intended that public funds collected from taxpayers be given as relief to those who misuse the law by filing fabricated cases. The court sentenced the woman to six months’ simple imprisonment under Indian Penal Code Section 182 (giving false information to a public servant) and 3 years’ under Section 211 (false charge of offence made with intent to injure).
