Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has ruled that incidents occurring within four walls, through WhatsApp messages, or via private emails, do not fall under the definition of “public place” and hence cannot attract provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The court observed that only allegations of caste-based humiliation taking place in public view can be tried under the Act, as per statutory provisions and Supreme Court guidelines.
The order came in a case filed by D Nirupama and her father, Anupama Babu, residents of Secunderabad, seeking quashing of an SC/ST case registered against them by Nirupama’s former husband, K Kranti Kiran. Justice EV Venugopal, after hearing arguments recently, delivered the judgment.
Case background
Advocate Vimal Varma Vasireddy, representing the petitioners, informed the court that Nirupama had earlier divorced her first husband and subsequently married Kranti Kiran.
However, due to continued differences, the couple parted ways through mutual consent. Nearly 10 months after their separation, Kranti Kiran filed a complaint alleging caste-based abuses, relying on WhatsApp messages and emails.
The counsel argued that disputes arising from a domestic relationship cannot be stretched into an SC/ST atrocity case, particularly when the alleged communications were restricted to private conversations. He cited the Supreme Court ruling in Hitesh Verma vs. State of Uttarakhand, which clarified that the Act applies only to public incidents where caste abuses are hurled in public view.
Court’s findings
The High Court noted that no independent witnesses came forward alleging that such remarks were made in a public place or in the presence of others.
The evidence, being limited to private communication between the estranged couple, fails to satisfy the legal requirements of the Act.
Consequently, the court held that continuing such proceedings would amount to misuse of the law. It quashed the pending SC/ST case before the lower court against the petitioners.
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