SC/ST Act: Dalit party pens letter in blood to PM Modi, President Kovind

05 April,2018 03:14 PM IST |  New Delhi  |  PTI

The party members also paid tributes to those who lost their lives during the Bharat Bandh protests.


Narendra Modi

Members of the Bhartiya Dalit Panthers Party on Thursday wrote a letter in blood to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Ram Nath Kovind against the alleged dilution of Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) (Prevention of Atrocities) Act by the Supreme Court.

The party members also paid tributes to those who lost their lives during the Bharat Bandh protests. The apex court had, on March 20, introduced the provision of anticipatory bail in the act while directing that there would be no automatic arrest on any complaint filed under the law.

Following which, various Dalit groups called for a 'Bharat Bandh' to demand restoration of the Act to its original form.

Agitators halted railway traffic, forced shops to shut down and made their presence felt in at least 10 states including Punjab, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan.

As the day began, protests were peaceful, but they quickly turned violent, with clashes erupting between police and protestors in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and elsewhere. Violent protests were reported in at least seven states.

Even as the Centre filed a review petition in the top court, the outrage over the ruling engulfed numerous parts of the country, claiming at least 11 lives.

In the latest development, the Supreme Court refused to put a stay order on its March 20 ruling, after the Centre filed a review petition against the same.

Also Read: BJP, Congress Cross Swords In Bihar Over SC/ST Act

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International, and Hatke news here. Also, download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability, and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever.
"Exciting news! Mid-day is now on WhatsApp Channels Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
narendra modi ram nath kovind supreme court bharat bandh
Related Stories