NEW DELHI: A bench of Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan, refused to stay the recent amendments brought in to the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. The bench issued notice to the Centre but refused to stay the amendments, saying “no stay can be granted without hearing the government”. The bench asked the Centre to file its reply in six weeks.
We know that the government has brought in new amendments, that too without removing the defects,” the bench said.
After hearing senior counsel Mohan Parasaran the bench said that it was also not a validation Act, As a counsel for petitioner Prithvi Raj Chauhan sought a stay on the amendments, the bench said, “It is now a legislation and cannot be stayed at this stage.”
In their petitions, Prathvi Raj Chauhan and Sanjeev Babanrao Bhor pointed out that the March 20 verdict providing for anticipatory bail and preliminary enquiry into the complaints. The government had approached the court with a review petition, but the apex court refused to stay its order.
