Govt admits SC, ST conviction rate in Gujarat is very low, 'decides' to hire low paid lawyers to overcome lag

In a major admission, the Gujarat government has said that government pleaders are so preoccupied with their jobs that they are “unable to address” and give “enough time” to fight cases related with Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. A government resolution (GR) issued by the state’s social justice and empowerment department with the specific intention of raising the conviction rate of atrocities cases has said that in the recent past the state government has witnessed a sharp fall in the ability to take up atrocity cases.
“Compared to many other states, the number of cases in which there is a failure to arrive at any conclusion in atrocity cases has gone up in Gujarat”, the GR admits, adding, the rate of success in the atrocities cases in the state is actually “negligible”. “In order to increase the success rate of conviction in atrocities cases and ensure their effectiveness, the Gujarat government has decided to provide certain concessions in the present rules by allowing private lawyers to be hired to fight atrocity cases”, the GR says. Till now, only government pleaders were allowed to fight atrocity cases.
And how does the Gujarat government want to increase the conviction rate? By allowing the complainants, belonging to SC or ST section, to “hire” a “private lawyer” or her or his liking, says the GR. And how much would the state government pay to such a “private lawyer” for this? The GR fixes the following maximum amount: Rs 50,000 in the case of murder and Rs 25,000 in the case of rape or any other major criminal case. The complainant, the GR says, can “take advantage of having a private lawyer through the backward class welfare official in each district.” It adds, the state government has set aside Rs 3.35 crore in the financial year 2013-14 for this.
The GR further says, under the scheme, the amount that the government would pay would have to follow the following criterion: “The private lawyer’s fee or government offer, whichever is lower”. It does not, however, say what the complainant should do in case the lawyer’s fee is higher than the maximum amount fixed! Then, 50 per cent of the amount would be paid to the private lawyer before the start of the case, while the rest of the 50 per cent would be paid after the end of the case. Further, “Only those private lawyers would be allowed to fight cases, who have at least 10 years the experience of taking up criminal cases”, the GR points out.
The GR says, “Priority would be given to scheduled tribe or caste private lawyers, though much would depend on the choice of the complainant.” At the same time, the GR points out, the cases would have to be taken up taking into account “limited government resources allocated during the current financial year”. It adds, “In future, efforts would be made to allocate a higher fund. In the meanwhile, it would be necessary to confine oneself to allocating the limited resources available for this.” The decision on this was taken, the GR informs, between the last week of April and first week of April.
Criticising the GR, a senior activist, Kantilal Parmar, told Counterview, “It is difficult to understand how the state government fixed the amount and under what criterion to pay to a private lawyer. Which private lawyer would agree for such a small amount?” Parmar, who belongs to Ahmedabad-based NGO Navsarjan Trust, said, “This is the surest attempt to shoo away best of the advocates to fight atrocity cases. We all know, how much do they charge. Some of them charge Rs 10,000 as single sitting consultation fees. Which world is the government living in?”
According to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes, conviction rate of atrocities against Dalits in Gujarat is one of the lowest in India. ML Punia, chairman of the commission, was quoted as saying in Gandhinagar that Gujarat may be a developed rate, but when it comes to conviction of those who have been booked under the atrocities Act, it is just about 3.5 per cent. This, he added, is against a whopping 34 per cent conviction rate in the country as a whole.

Comments

Irrational? Basis for fear among Hindus about being 'swamped' by Muslims

I was amused while reading an article titled "Ham Paanch, Hamare Pachees", shared on Facebook, by well-known policy analyst Mohan Guruswamy, an alumnus of the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, and the Graduate School of Business, Stanford University. Guruswamy, who has also worked as an advisor to the Finance Minister with the rank of Secretary to the Government of India, seeks to probe, as he himself states, "the supposed Muslim attitude to family planning"—a theme that was invoked by Narendra Modi as Gujarat Chief Minister ahead of the December 2002 assembly polls.

Why's Australian crackdown rattling Indian students? Whopping 25% fake visa applications

This is what happened several months ago. A teenager living in the housing society where I reside was sent to Australia to study at a university in Sydney with much fanfare. The parents, whom I often met as part of a group, would tell us how easily the boy got his admission with the help of "some well-meaning friends," adding that they had obtained an education loan to ensure he could study at a graduate school.

Tracking a lost link: Soviet-era legacy of Gujarati translator Atul Sawani

The other day, I received a message from a well-known activist, Raju Dipti, who runs an NGO called Jeevan Teerth in Koba village, near Gujarat’s capital, Gandhinagar. He was seeking the contact information of Atul Sawani, a translator of Russian books—mainly political and economic—into Gujarati for Progress Publishers during the Soviet era. He wanted to collect and hand over scanned soft copies, or if possible, hard copies, of Soviet books translated into Gujarati to Arvind Gupta, who currently lives in Pune and is undertaking the herculean task of collecting and making public soft copies of Soviet books that are no longer available in the market, both in English and Indian languages.

Gujarat slips in India Justice Report 2025: From model state to mid-table performer

Overall ranking in IJR reports The latest India Justice Report (IJR), prepared by legal experts with the backing of several civil society organisations and aimed at ranking the capacity of states to deliver justice, has found Gujarat—considered by India's rulers as a model state for others to follow—slipping to the 11th position from fourth in 2022.

Punishing senior citizens? Flipkart, Shopsy stop Cash on Delivery in Ahmedabad!

The other day, someone close to me attempted to order some goodies on Flipkart and its subsidiary Shopsy. After preparing a long list of items, this person, as usual, opted for the Cash on Delivery (popularly known as COD) option, as this senior citizen isn't very familiar with online prepaid payment methods like UPI, credit or debit cards, or online bank transfers through websites. In fact, she is hesitant to make online payments, fearing, "I may make a mistake," she explained, adding, "I read a lot about online frauds, so I always choose COD as it's safe. I have no knowledge of how to prepay online."

A conman, a demolition man: How 'prominent' scribes are defending Pritish Nandy

How to defend Pritish Nandy? That’s the big question some of his so-called fans seem to ponder, especially amidst sharp criticism of his alleged insensitivity during his journalistic career. One such incident involved the theft and publication of the birth certificate of Masaba Gupta, daughter of actor Neena Gupta, in the Illustrated Weekly of India, which Nandy was editing at the time. He reportedly did this to uncover the identity of Masaba’s father.

Of lingering shadow of Haren Pandya's murder during Modi's Gujarat days

Sunita Williams’ return to Earth has, ironically, reopened an old wound: the mysterious murder of her first cousin, the popular BJP leader Haren Pandya, in 2003. Initially a supporter of Narendra Modi, Haren turned against him, not sparing any opportunity to do things that would embarrass Modi. Social media and some online news portals, including The Wire , are abuzz with how Modi’s recent invitation to Sunita to visit India comes against the backdrop of how he, as Gujarat’s chief minister, didn’t care to offer any official protocol support during her 2007 visit to Gujarat.

Area set aside in Ahmedabad for PM's affordable housing scheme 'has gone to big builders'

Following my article on affordable housing in Counterview, which quoted a top real estate consultant, I was informed that affordable housing—a scheme introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi—has deviated from its original intent. A former senior bureaucrat, whom I used to meet during my Sachivalaya days, told me that an entire area in Ahmedabad, designated for the scheme, has been used to construct costly houses instead.

Just 5% Gujarat Dalit households 'recognise' social reformers who inspired Ambedkar

An interesting survey conducted across 22 districts and 32 villages in Gujarat sheds light on the representation of key social reformers in Dalit households. It suggests that while Dr. B.R. Ambedkar's photo was displayed in a majority of homes, images of Lord Buddha and the 19th-century reformist couple, Savitribai Phule and Jyotiba Phule, were not as commonly represented.

Search This Blog