The number of criminal cases registered under the Protection of Civil Rights Act (PCR Act), 1955, for offences related to “untouchability” has seen a decline, with pendency in courts remaining above 97% and nearly all disposed cases resulting in acquittals, according to the Union government’s 2022 annual report on the implementation of the law. The report was recently made public by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
The Act is intended to define various manifestations of untouchability, including in social and religious spheres, and prescribe penalties. It mandates an annual review report with inputs from States and Union Territories, covering aspects such as case registration, pendency in police and courts, establishment of special courts and police stations, and inter-caste marriage incentives, among others.
According to data provided to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), a total of 13 cases were registered under the PCR Act across the country in 2022 — a decline from 24 in 2021 and 25 in 2020. These cases were reported from Jammu and Kashmir (5), Karnataka (5), Maharashtra (2), and Himachal Pradesh (1). Of the 51 cases pending with police during 2022, including those from previous years, chargesheets were filed in 12.
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The report also noted that none of the States or Union Territories that submitted data had declared any area within their jurisdiction as “untouchability prone”.
At the court level, a total of 1,242 cases were pending trial under the Act. Of the 31 cases disposed of by courts in 2022, one resulted in a conviction, while the remaining 30 ended in acquittals. A review of previous annual reports showed that all 37 PCR Act cases disposed of by courts between 2019 and 2021 also ended in acquittals.
In contrast, the number of cases registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, has risen steadily, with 62,501 cases reported in 2022. Pendency figures under this Act stood at over 17,000 cases with police and over 2.33 lakh with courts across the country.
A review of past reports in the PCR Act further revealed that the number of cases registered under this law started reducing after 1989, when the Prevention of Atrocities Act was enacted.
The 2022 report also documented that 18,936 inter-caste marriage couples were given financial incentives of ₹2.5 lakh each under the PCR Act across 21 States and Union Territories. Maharashtra reported the highest number of beneficiaries at 4,100, followed by Karnataka (3,519) and Tamil Nadu (2,217).
However, several States — including Bihar, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand — did not provide data regarding inter-caste marriage incentives. In addition, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Lakshadweep submitted “NIL” information with respect to the implementation of the PCR Act, while Manipur did not submit any input despite repeated reminders.
