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Showing contexts for: insult SC/ST in Kingshuk Chatterjee & Anr vs State Of West Bengal & Anr on 19 April, 2024Matching Fragments
(r) intentionally insults or intimidates with intent to humiliatea member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe in any place within public view."
Therefore, the essential ingredients necessary to establish an offence against an accused under this section, are that -
i. an element of intentionally insults or intimidation of a member of SC/ST must be there, ii. The act of insult must be committed with intent to humiliate a member of SC/ST, iii. The insult must be made in any place within public view.
27. Moreover, the legislature is not intended to make each and every insult or intimidation for humiliation of a member of SC/ST an offence u/s 3(1)(r) of the S.C/ S.T Act unless, of course, such insult or intimidation occasioned in any place within public view to member of a Scheduled Caste or Tribe. It had been an admitted fact that Bubai was not present at the P.O. at the time of occurrence. Despite that, he lodged FIR after 16 months. The delay in filing FIR cannot discard the possiblyof after- thought and embellishment in the written complaint. Registration and investigation of the offence needs high degree of precision in such cases. During the investigation of the first FIR, none of the witnesses stated anything about the incident ofuttering of caste related abuse in public view to insult O.P2. If they had missed to inform it to the I.O, the O.P had the option to pray for further investigation U/S 173 (8) of the Cr.P.C. In spite of following proper procedure, they preferred to file second complaint on the self-same occurrence intentionally to harass the petitioners by bringing allegations under more strict provisions under the SC/ST Act. It is also relevant to mention that theI.O of the second charge-sheet opined that 'so far as the allegations with respect to sections 448 and 506 of IPC are concerned, a specific case was already started at AJC Bose B Garden PS which already ended in charge-sheet in connection with first FIR'. It evidently expressed that the second charge- sheet(which is in question herein), is nothing but an elaboration, improvement and extension of the investigation of first FIR, made to fulfill the lacuna. Law does not recognize such procedure. Therefore, the registration of two FIRs and submission of two charge-sheets on self- same incident is not acceptable in criminal jurisprudence.