In Pursuit of Dignity: A Dalit Experience of Caste Atrocities in Kerala

Introduction

With its survival of centuries of existence, caste as an everyday phenomenon in the Indian society is sought to be tackled through various mediums, such as perennial anti-caste resistance movements across the country and international activism worldwide (Bob, 2007). A robust constitutional and legal mechanism has been established to ensure social justice and protect the rights of marginalized sections in India. In the constitutional domain, provisions such as Article 14, 15(1), 15(2), 15(4), 16(4), 17, 23, 46, 330, 332, 338 and 338A have been adopted to ensure equity principles (Akhtar, 2020, p. 76; Waughray, 2010, p. 339) that transgress the traditional boundaries of social morality and caste hierarchy. With a primary objective of curbing discrimination and violence against Scheduled Castes, several legislations including the Untouchability Act of 1955, which was later renamed as the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955; Bonded Labour (Abolition) Act, 1976; the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (Panini, 2001, p. 3345; Vibhute, 2002, p. 473); and the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2015, have been formulated. Among these, the Prevention of Atrocities Act is touted as the most powerful legal instrument against caste discrimination in independent India.

The PoA Act 1989 came into force on 30 January 1990 and provided for a special court of trial, as well as a provision for rehabilitation of the victims of caste humiliation. It is described as the only hate crime law in India (Fuchs, 2022). The Act entails a clear definition of the offences of atrocities, punishments, measures for the effective implementation, rights of both victims and witnesses, etc. It ensures a proper mechanism for its monitoring and outlaws the customs that endorse the practice of untouchability (Rao, 2009). Later, the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Rule was notified on 31 March 1995, providing minimum relief and rehabilitation to victims, which can be amended from time to time. The original Act was expanded further into the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act 2015 by listing new offences and streamlining the legal process (Gopakumar, 2016; Rajagopal, 2018; Sujatha, 2017). The Act was again modified as the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act 2018 (Anuja & Verma, 2018; Chaturvedi, 2018; Kumar, 2018; Shrivastava, 2018), following a nationwide protest against a judicial order released on 20 March 2018, which laid down the procedural safeguards to stop the ‘misuse’ of the Act (Donthi, 2018). The amendment that came into force on 20 August 2018 as a response to the widespread agitation against judiciary for ‘diluting’ the Act (Mitra, 2018) has removed the provision of anticipatory bail, which was later upheld by the Supreme Court itself (Krishnan, 2020; Mathur, 2020).

The PoA Act, a guard against caste violence, has moral, social, historical and political implications. The Act, while acknowledging structural violence, functions as a legal bulwark against historical injustices, marginalization and systemic exclusion of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. It is envisioned as a legal means to historical redressal for past injustices and centuries of exploitation. The Act prevents and criminalizes caste-based discrimination, humiliation and violence against SCs and STs. From the vantage point of the ‘social’, the Act identifies the crimes, not just as an individual action but also as social violence deeply rooted in the hierarchical caste structures, unlike the function of other criminal laws. Thus, the social and structural discrimination is adequately recognized in the Act. In the realm of power and politics, the Act comes out as a powerful force to dismantle the hegemony of the dominant-caste individuals/groups over the socially weaker sections. The Act also underscores the duty of the state to protect the vulnerable castes from all kinds of exploitation. Normatively, the Act reflects the constitutional commitment of the nation as a whole to democratic values of equality, justice and dignity. In the moral realm, it curbs the most inhuman practices of caste and caste discrimination. The Act is also significant in empowering the marginalized sections in seeking equality and thereby rebuilding dignified spaces for them.

However, despite its multidimensional instrumentality and importance, the Act often becomes a contentious site of conflicting interests between victims and perpetrators. One of the predominant concerns that often surfaces in the public realm is the filing of fake cases. Highlighting the concerns about the protection of the accused from false allegations, several judicial pronouncements accentuated the misuse of the Act for settling personal scores and political vendetta (Ambarish, 2025; Ananthakrishnan, 2025; Sarin, 2024). For instance, in 2025, while the hearing of an appeal by Konde Nageshwar Rao against the 2014 judgement of the High Court of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, the Supreme Court bench of the Chief Justice of India B. R. Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih quashed the criminal proceedings initiated against the accused, citing the misuse of the Act (Sharma, 2025). Previously, the apex court acknowledged the misuse of the Act in its ruling in cases such as Tripathi (2025). The courts, while adjudicating various cases related to atrocities, have cited factors such as the absence of intention on the side of the accused to humiliate a member of the marginalized section and the lack of proof of the accused being aware of the caste of the complainant as adequate reasons to dismiss the cases. While cautioning against the unrestricted application of the Act and its use as a tool of penal populism, it has been argued that any invocation of the Act would undermine the justice for those who did not intend to degrade any Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes (Naik & Verma, 2025).

While there is a scathing criticism against the misuse of the Act, the successful enforcement of the Act to deliver justice to the real victims of caste discrimination still remains grim. In other words, the question of the effectiveness of the Act and its limitations to address the genuine concerns of the members of the marginalized section who face atrocities raises several concerns. For instance, it is observed that one of the inherent problems with the Act is that it penalizes only a few kinds of insults inflicted upon SCs or STs by non-SC or non-ST persons (Baudh, 2017, p. 227). Moreover, there is no significant decline in cases of violence despite the Act being in place for decades (Khobragade, 2014, p. 57; Weisser, 2016). The conviction and acquittal rates signify a certain pattern. The data as per government document titled ‘Report U/s 21(4) of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989, for the year 2022’ says that the number of cases registered with the police in the years 2020, 2021 and 2022 were 53,886, 54,085 and 62,601, respectively (Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, 2022). The percentage of cases pending in the court in the same years were 96.4%, 95.9% and 94.1%. The percentages of cases ending in conviction in 2020, 2021 and 2022 were 39.2%, 32.7% and 32.4%, respectively. A close reading of the data shows that the cases of atrocities are on the rise over the years, while the conviction rate is on the decline. According to the report, the percentage of cases concluded as ‘false, mistake of fact/law, true but insufficient evidence’ in the final stage of investigation was 14.78%. In the year 2022, the number of cases ending in conviction was 4,876 (32.65%) in SCs and 872 (31.24%) in STs. The number of cases ending in acquittal was 10,058 (67.35%) and 1,919 (68.76%) in SCs and STs, respectively. High acquittal rates and low conviction rates in crimes against Dalits raise an important question about the effective implementation of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. It is also significant to note that the judges who cite the misuse of the Act are also not able to provide any statistical evidence to substantiate their observations or opinions; instead, they rely on other high court judgements. It is observed that the judiciary, steeped in caste-based prejudice, is ignorant of the sociopolitical realities of caste atrocities (Datta, 2018). The caste-blind judiciary fails Dalits in the process of seeking justice by refusing to acknowledge the reality of caste, as evident in cases such as Hanamath v. State of Karnataka 2005 and Ramdas v. State of Maharashtra 2006 (Datta, 2014). It has also been argued that the prejudices in India’s legal institutions can weaponize the PoA Act against the marginalized sections, which is supposed to protect them, by depicting the Act as dangerous in the public eye (Fuchs, 2024). Moreover, in most cases, a thorough investigation into the experiences of individual victims remains completely absent. The closure of cases citing lack of evidence by the police is also a major challenge in ensuring justice under the Act. In this context of competing narratives of misuse of the Act, on the one hand, and the underenforcement of the law, on the other, the article seeks to decipher the direct experience of the victims of caste discrimination in Kerala to understand the real-time difficulties in seeking justice under the Act.

Methodology

The article is based on a case study of caste discrimination that occurred in Kerala and the subsequent efforts of the victims to get justice under the SC/SCT (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. A field study was conducted in the Idiyanpara district of Kerala between 2024 and 2025. The actual name of the district has been changed to a pseudonym to ensure anonymity. To understand the operationalization of the Act, the study examined the experiences of the complainant and other stakeholders involved in the case. The examination of the experience of the Dalit victim in the case, especially a Dalit woman, was helpful in understanding the prospects and challenges in resolving caste-based discrimination under the Act. The study has employed a phenomenological approach, focusing on the lived experiences of the participants and how they make sense of the phenomenon of caste in their everyday life. The phenomenological research design helps to understand and analyse a phenomenon through the experiences of individuals (Dibley et al., 2020). We documented their narratives based on their own experiences while dealing with the case. The personal narratives of the victims of caste discrimination and their experiences of seeking justice under the existing legal system constitute a major share of the primary data.

Qualitative research methods are adopted in the study. Purposive and snowball sampling were used in the research to identify participants based on the local networks of one of the authors. Purposive sampling, the intentional selection of informants based on their experience and the knowledge of a theme or a phenomenon, is often used in qualitative and mixed-methods research (Palys, 2008; Robinson, 2014; Stratton, 2024). A case study design often involves a purposive sample, which has the advantage of identifying participants who can provide detailed data relevant to the research question (Oliver, 2006). The research subjects of this study were selected through purposive sampling, as it is suited to collecting information on the same theme of their experiences with caste discrimination and their efforts to seek justice under the Atrocities Act. All the informants of the study were directly or indirectly connected with the atrocity case under discussion. Snowball sampling, a non-probability method often used in qualitative research, relies on referrals from the initially identified respondents who expand the contact networks and the web of inquiry (Crouse & Lowe, 2018; Lewis-Beck et al., 2004; Parker et al., 2019). It generates a unique kind of social knowledge by investigating respondents’ organic social networks (Noy, 2008). Given the advantage of using the social networks of the initially identified respondents, the study has employed snowball sampling to expand the pool of potential contacts. The researchers asked the participants who were initially identified to nominate other potential informants based on their involvement in the case. The sample eventually snowballed to a larger pool of participants through referrals. Apart from the direct victims of the case, other participants who were identified in the study are individuals from the domains of social activism, legal profession and administration. Opinions from community leaders, social activists, legal professionals, bureaucrats and academicians were also collected to gain a comprehensive understanding of the topic. They constitute the key research group. Respondents were purposively selected from individuals directly or indirectly involved in the case under study, as well as those engaged in addressing atrocities cases in Kerala in different roles and professions. Some of them were directly involved in helping victims obtain justice by assisting them with filing FIRs, police complaints and court proceedings. A total of 20 participants were interviewed. All of them belonged to the Scheduled Caste. Of the 20 respondents, 8 were women and 12 were men, with an age range of 30–62 years. People with no lived experience of caste-based atrocity or dealing with justice processes are excluded from the study. Individuals from non-Scheduled Castes are also not included in the study. Some of the participants were contacted through telephonic conversations. The interviews lasted between 1 and 1.5 hours. The names of the participants are kept anonymous. We used pseudonyms in this article. The data were collected through case studies and in-depth interviews. In-depth interviews with open-ended questions helped to gather detailed accounts of the experiences of the participants and their hurdles in seeking justice under the Atrocities Act. The data collected through interviews were qualitatively analysed, and the responses of the interviewees were coded according to the different dimensions of experience of the respondents. The Intercoder Reliability measure was avoided for coding the data. Thematic analysis was employed in the study. It requires careful reading to identify themes from the data set (Rice & Ezzy, 1999). Both authors read and re-read the data to gather a better familiarity with the content. A hybrid process of inductive and deductive thematic approach, combining a priori codes informed by the existing literature and the data-driven codes derived from the collected data set, was used in the study. The researchers identified the broader patterns from the coded data. Lastly, the themes were named, reviewed, defined and organized to ensure the maintenance of essence, consistency and coherence.

The first author shares a cultural, linguistic and social proximity with the participants in the study, which helped to build trust and rapport among them. Before all interviews, rapport was established to make participants feel comfortable sharing their experiences. The first author conducted all interviews due to the local language proficiency. Both authors belong to the same social location as the respondents. The social location of the researchers provided an insider perspective to decipher the experiences of caste discrimination and exploitation. However, the researchers adopted a reflective approach to avoid overgeneralizing or oversimplifying the experiences of the participants. Recognizing that power differentials emanate from academic positions and institutional affiliations, the researchers sought to represent the narratives with utmost care and ethical responsibility. As an ethical consideration in the research, participants were informed of the research objective before engaging in interaction and discussion. A detailed explanation of the nature and objectives of the study was given to the participants. Consent was taken from the participants before the investigation. The study also used secondary resources such as newspapers, opinion articles, census reports and national crime reports to obtain an in-depth understanding of the varied facts of the implementation of the Atrocities Act and the struggle of Scheduled Castes in pursuit of justice.

Dalits’ Experience with Caste Untouched by Law in Kerala: A Case Study

The case under study is on the discrimination against a Dalit child by an upper-caste Christian school teacher in a primary school in Kerala. The school is an aided educational institution run by a Christian management that has a significant socio-economic and political clout in Kerala’s public domain. The child was specifically asked to clean the vomit of his classmate, who was ill. The mother of the child came to know about the incident 3 days later. Saddened and traumatized by the incident of mistreatment of her child by the teacher, the mother immediately called the principal of the school and complained about the incident. But the lukewarm approach of the school authority in addressing the issue shocked the mother and left her in deep agony. When the mother realized that she would not get any justice for her child from the school authorities, she called up the child helpline in Kerala, and the staff gave her the suggestion to write a complaint to the assistant education officer (AEO). Accordingly, she wrote a complaint to AEO, but he could not respond to the case, citing his engagement with an art fest in the state at that time. Consequently, she submitted a written complaint to the sub-inspector (SI) of the local police station. As narrated by the child’s mother, the SI was moving the case very slowly, resulting in a delay in the investigation. As a result, the school authorities apparently got adequate time to train the students to give statements in their favour and influence the parents of other students to turn against the complainant. After observing the delay from the side of the local police authorities, the mother approached the district collector. Though the district collector assured justice and promised to submit the report to higher authorities, the complainant did not receive any updates from her.

Meanwhile, some of the local Dalit organizations in the area came to know about the incident and started contacting the police officers to get updates about the case. Due to the mounting pressure from the complainant and activists, an FIR under the PoA Act was registered against the school teacher by the deputy superintendent of police, that too after 5 days of their incessant demands.

Later, an assistant superintendent of police (ASP) took charge of the case for investigation. The mother shared that the ASP was sceptical about the caste angle in the case during their conversation. The ASP, an IPS officer from Punjab, dismantled her explanation of caste as a reason for discrimination, citing Kerala’s high literacy rate and a better Human Development Index. The local police officials, who were translating the child’s statement from Malayalam to English for the officer, also told him that caste discrimination rarely exists in Kerala. They also convinced the officer that the children doing small work at schools is a common sight in Kerala. Apparently, the local police authorities attempted to invisibilize the caste factor from the case through false narratives and manipulations. Despite the mounting pressure from Dalit organizations, no action was taken against the culprit even after 3 weeks had passed after the registration of the FIR.

It is significant to note that the case involves both child rights violations and caste discrimination. However, the initial behaviour of the investigating officers indicates a desperation to cancel the caste factor in the case, as explained by the mother of the victim. Even when the school authorities reportedly admitted that they make other children also do work in school, despite knowing it is a crime under the purview of the Juvenile Justice Act, they wanted to erase the caste factor from the case as they knew that the offence of caste discrimination can invite more repercussions under the SC/ST Atrocities Act.

After a month, the complainant received a message on her mobile, indicating that the case at the police station had been closed and transferred to court. She also shared that the police submitted a final report to the district court, which dismissed the charges against the accused. The final report, a significant component of justice delivery, often means the invalidation of the narrative of the victim (Khora, 2014). Due to inadequate resources to run the case further and the threats from the accused in several forms, the complainant eventually decided not to pursue the case in the court. She could not bear the hefty court costs and the advocate’s fee. The unfair investigation by the local police also added to her scepticism about the system. The case came to closure due to the financial burden and a biased investigation into the incident. The case study hints at the major stumbling blocks in pursuing justice at various levels. An analysis of this case study identifies major constraints and challenges in obtaining justice, especially under the SC/ST Atrocities Act. There are several challenges faced by people when they deal with the PoA Act. Some of them are discussed in the following sections using the thematic analysis of the data.

Legal Illiteracy, Lack of Social Capital and Political Clout

The Dalit victims in an atrocities case are often unaware of the legal provisions and procedures to be followed while seeking their justice. The intricate legal interactions that often depend on translational opportunities obscure the broader processes (Fuchs, 2020). The case under study also entails the issue of a lack of legal knowledge. The victim of the case study was completely unaware of legal rights. For instance, the victim did not know she was entitled to get a copy of her statements recorded by the police. While sharing her experience at the police station, the victim stated:

My son and I were made to sit in the police station late at night. Though I requested the police to complete the formalities a bit earlier, the police gave the reason for the delay, saying that the concerned officer is on other duties. I did not know the rule that a woman and a child shall not be asked to stay back in the police station till late at night which, is against the law. I came to know about the rule from an advocate whom I contacted later.

This shows that the victims who deal with the case under the Atrocities Act face unfair treatment from the same people who are within the legal system, just due to their inadequate knowledge of rights. The absence of proper and timely access of victims to legal advice is also often misused by the investigating officers in delaying the registration of an FIR. Legal illiteracy and inaccessibility to legal advisors remain underdiscussed, though those have a direct impact on the outcome and enforcement of the Act. From the conversation with the stakeholders involved, especially with the local activists, it was clear that most of them were unaware of the procedures during investigation, such as how to lodge an FIR, provisions of the Act, other legal terms and the documentation process.

In addition, the caste identity of the victim makes the position even more vulnerable. In contrast, the social location of the perpetrator, along with their political influence, positively influences the investigation team in their favour. The culprits, due to their wealth and political power, are never deterred by the Atrocities Act (Prasad & Bibhar, 2020). The absence of a network in the victim’s social milieu can easily undermine the confidence of the victim, as reflected in the case study. The lack of social capital is a structural barrier that prevents them from accessing justice. The social networks, resources and relationships are instrumental in securing community support while navigating through legal systems. However, the absence of those resources among victims exacerbates their vulnerabilities. The victim in the case under study is not part of any local power structures, including panchayats or other political groups. Therefore, there is an inadequate support system in the form of any caste-based patronage or political backing, unlike the case of the dominant-caste perpetrators. Most of the victims also do not have any personal relationships with police, bureaucrats, lawyers, politicians or local leaders to seek any sort of help.

From the case study, it was observed that the lack of support from local elites led to questioning the probity of the claims of the victims. The complainant in the case study was labelled as a troublemaker for approaching the case legally to fight against the discrimination. Such hostility from the local leaders often leads to ostracism and stigmatization. The victim stated that

the local groups were not happy with the complaint. They asked me why I was taking up the case against the school and why I was destroying the peace. They asked me to withdraw the case. People have turned against me for fighting this case.

Consequently, there was a lack of collective mobilization in support of the victims. The number of political representatives from Scheduled Castes with actual and effective representation is also negligible, especially in rural areas. The local pressure due to the lack of social capital is also one of the challenges that Scheduled Castes face while fighting the atrocities case. One of the activists stated that ‘the victim doesn’t have enough support from the people in the area’. Another problem with a lack of social capital is the difficulty in accessing witnesses and evidence. Many fear the powerful castes and the consequences of providing any information regarding the case. The lack of a supportive network further weakens the cases that come under the PoA Act. On the other side, the sociopolitical and economic might of the rival party has given an edge in the case. Without any political backing, the case could also not be put on the right track.

Institutional Constraints: Media, Police and Judiciary

Although the media does not directly link to PoA, it can have a significant impact on the case. Media attention is a strong pressure factor for the officials to conduct a fair and serious inquiry. In contrast, inadequate reporting by the media often creates favourable conditions for the investigating officers to take the case casually. One of the patterns identified from the data is that the mainstream media is hesitant to report a case of caste atrocities. In the context of Kerala, in particular, many media houses are run by Christian groups who are a minority in India, yet a dominant group in Kerala. Highlighting the indifferent attitude of media towards the cases of Dalits, the community leaders during the interview stated that ‘we approached some of the news reporters in the Malayalam media. They did not pay much attention to the case, knowing the religion and institution of the perpetrator’. The majority of the participants emphasized that Christians and Muslims in Kerala practice casteism in both overt and covert forms. The perpetrator in the case under study is a Christian.

The rampant media apathy in the cases of atrocities undermines visibility, accountability and the formation of public pressure. It further weakens justice. Many of the cases of atrocities go unreported. The mainstream English media in India also does not cover the atrocity cases until they get national attention. Cases that happen in or around Delhi sometimes get coverage, though not always. Extreme sensational cases like the Hathras incident get attention rarely, while everyday caste violence is ignored by the media. The case of rural India is often overlooked. The Indian newsrooms that are over-represented by the upper castes, having no commitment to the social cause, lead to institutional bias in covering up the issues of Dalits. Investigative journalism, which exposes caste impunity, bureaucratic delays and complicity of officials through a systematic investigation, is almost extinct now. Media silence reduces popular pressure for justice and public outrage, boosts the confidence of perpetrators and helps the state institutions to avoid scrutiny.

It is important to note that the independent Dalit media serves as an alternative platform for bringing to light the stories of Dalit lives. But the grassroots reporting of the caste atrocities receives no recognition, popularity, amplification or funding. In the context of Kerala, the presence of an independent Dalit media house is abysmal. However, it is significant to point out the role of Dalit media working in North India in bringing news into the broad light. The victim said that

One of my friends wrote about the incident on a social media platform. One woman working in a Dalit media platform noticed that social media post and contacted me to know more details. She then published my story of caste discrimination in her media, which helped many people to be informed about the incident.

It is also evident from the case study that the police officials play a crucial role in determining the course of the case, based on the nature of the investigation they conduct. They can impact the case both positively and negatively. However, in most PoA cases, a fair police investigation is hampered by upper-caste interference (Berg, 2020; Teltumbde, 2018). Many of the police officials deal with the case of caste discrimination callously (Jaoul, 2015), believing that complaints filed under PoA are false (Rao, 2019). Refusing to add PoA sections to the FIR, police officials also tend to delay the investigation, citing the narrative of the victims as a mere baseless allegation (Khan, 2021; Mangubhai & Singh, 2014). They act more responsively when cases are filed under IPC in contradiction to the PoA Act (Pal, 2023) and are embedded in the networks of caste (Jauregui, 2016). In many cases, complainants face challenges in registering their cases, which often culminate in a very low conviction rate and a high acquittal rate (Saxena, 2018). One of the advocates who was involved in the case under study stated that ‘I have experience of dealing with a dozen atrocities cases. Most of them could not get justice due to the police apathy. In fact, the police in Kerala are notorious for disposing of atrocities cases’.

The case under study reveals the negative role of the police as experienced by the victim. When the victim made a complaint at the SI and circle inspector (CI) levels, there was a lukewarm approach from their side, which is quite disappointing for the victim. The police exhibited a repulsive approach. Recording the statements of the victim was also not very comprehensive. The victim observed that the SI and CI were more tilted towards the side of the perpetrators. As a result, she had to approach the district collector to take cognizance of the matter. It is also observed in many cases that the investigating officers deliberately delay in registering complaints and recording the statements for providing adequate gap for the perpetrators to seek protection from any possible action, including arrest. During the interview, one of the activists said that ‘local police never file an FIR under PoA unless adequate pressure is put on them by the community leaders and activists. It is a cumbersome work’. In tandem with such observations, another advocate and activist with whom I had a conversation stated that

Based on my vast experiences in this profession, I can say that the police officials in most of the cases never follow the statute. They never follow the provisions of the Act. Unfortunately, there is no mechanism to check their negligence during the investigation. Their role can be brought under scrutiny only when the case comes to the court.

He opined that it is very difficult to reform the way the police function and think. The recent decolonization attempt of changing the criminal code of procedure to Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has also given a wide jurisdiction for them in the matter of investigation. The role of the court has also been confined to mere monitoring. The social activists involved in the case also raised the same concern about the negative role of the police in the investigation. They said that they need to invariably put organizational pressure on the police to act in certain cases. While explaining the attitude of the police officials, the victim’s mother stated:

Initially, the local police were not ready to file an FIR. I pursued them for a week through regular visits and local activists to get an FIR done. I stayed back till late at night in the station to lodge the FIR, which was torturous. When the case was taken over by the IPS-level officer, he was very suspicious of the caste angle. Since he was from North India, he asked me how caste can exist in an educated society like Kerala. He was not convinced about my explanation and experience.

A close monitoring and regular updates are always needed to avoid any tampering of the evidence by the police. There is a disproportionate influence of police in categorizing and investigating complaints related to PoA (Fuchs, 2024). Though the police can play a significant role in ensuring justice, their hostile approach to victims can become a major constraint in guaranteeing an effective implementation of the Act.

Another major challenge in the effective implementation of the Atrocities Act is the probity of the public prosecutors. There is a rampant opinion among the people that it is difficult to believe public prosecutors, as they may deceive the complainant due to money, power and influence from the opposition side. Some of the activists involved in the cases also testified about untrustworthy public prosecutors. One of the activists stated that ‘I have seen many cases where the public prosecutor remains silent when there is an important intervention is [sic] needed from them. They also deliberately avoid mentioning the crucial points which are favourable in the case’. The failures on the part of public prosecutors also obstruct the fair administration of justice for victims.

Neglected Ordeal of Mental Trauma and Physical Exhaustion of the Victims

Dalits, while dealing with the case, undergo both mental and physical stress. The helplessness, fear and anxiety while confronting the rude officers are an ordeal for them. The social pressure and the vengeful propaganda by the accused using their structural support exacerbate their vulnerabilities. Moving from one office to another using public transport and without adequate food intake leads to physical exhaustion of the victims. During my conversation, the child’s mother also shared that she and her child had to stay back at the police station until early morning at 2 a.m. to get the FIR registered. The child suffered the most during the entire process of investigation in which no police personnel ensured food and comfort for the child. The mother said that ‘there are times when my son asked me with fear and fatigue, “Mom, do we need to go to police station again?”’ During the investigation, the child was transferred from the old school to a new school. The trauma of the child in experiencing the discrimination and anxiety of attending the new school was highlighted by the mother.

The victim, during the conversation, also stated:

I was not only mentally disturbed but also physically exhausted. I have no money left. I sometimes think that I should not have ventured into the act of seeking justice; instead, I should have kept quiet and tolerated everything on my own. But the humiliation which is hard hitting me was intolerable.

Humiliation is historically woven into the social life of Dalits (Guru, 2009), which becomes both the site of subjugation and resistance for the marginalized. Though many of the PoA cases do not reach courts, those that reach the courts are often withdrawn due to lack of financial capital (Nathan & Thorat, 2020).

There is a sense of despair in the words of the victims. Lack of finance capital, mental agony and physical weakness often culminate in withdrawal of cases. It is also found that the onus of proving the crime of caste discrimination lies with the victims. Even after experiencing caste discrimination, they were asked by the police to give evidence. Proving the intention of the accused and the caste factor in the case is very difficult as it is confined to the metaphysical domain. Citing a lack of proof often leads to the acquittal of the accused. It is important to reinterpret the provisions in such a way that the very identity of the marginalized caste, whether the accused knows it from before or not, must be made adequate to punish the accused. It is not the intention of the accused that makes the marginalized caste vulnerable, but the very social identity makes them subject to exploitation. When an SC or ST person is subjected to violence, the intention or the accused’s prior knowledge of the caste identity of the victim is often used as an alibi to release the perpetrator. Punishing the perpetrators based on the act they commit will not only help to prevent the violence against Dalits but also be useful in curbing the violence against any individual.

Conclusion

There are adequate constitutional provisions and legal mechanisms to protect the rights of SCs in India. However, as the findings of the study indicate that the enforcement of those laws has become difficult due to several factors, including apathy of the police administration, frequent demoralizing observations from the judiciary, lack of social capital, absence of legal awareness and the lack of evidence. The widespread prejudices against the Atrocities Act, propagated by the socially privileged castes in every public forum and validated by the judiciary through several pronouncements, often refuse to look into the real challenges faced by Dalits at the grassroots level. As found in the study, the local administration is still hesitant to entertain a case under the Atrocities Act, even if it is genuine. The social power of the accused often overshadows police’s and the administrator’s will to enforce the law. The onus of proving the caste angle in the case, unofficially, lies with the victims. The practical limitations of proving the intent of the accused itself reflect the inherent flaw in the Act, which needs special scrutiny and attention. In the flawed enforcement structures, the struggle of the victim gets worse with their weak financial situation, lack of social support and legal unawareness. The psychological trauma of the victims in the case is immeasurable, but goes unnoticed. The culmination of all of it is the voluntary withdrawal from the pursuit of justice. However, many such withdrawals are not discussed and debated enough. This study provides a few insights into the lived experiences of the victims and the circumstances in which they withdraw themselves from seeking further justice. It is significant that the policymakers and legal machineries ensure the rectification of the flaws in the Act and its enforcement instead of becoming a part of the prejudiced understanding of Dalits’ lives, which hampers the development of an inclusive and egalitarian humane spaces.