Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) founder Thol. Thirumavalavan has said that the State government should ensure that the meetings of the Vigilance and Monitoring Committee are held four times a year at the district level. He welcomed the reorganisation of the committees that will oversee the implementation of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
In a statement, Mr. Thirumavalavan congratulated Chief Minister M.K. Stalin for announcing that the committee would meet twice a year.
“According to the 2018 amendment to the Act, the committee must meet twice a year, and the meeting must be chaired by the Chief Minister. The committee must look into the implementation of the Act and ensure that justice and rehabilitation is provided to the victims. However, during the previous AIADMK government, the panel was not formed. When the issue was raised in Parliament by the VCK, it was revealed that the meeting, which should have been chaired by the Chief Minister, had not taken place for many years,” he said.
He said that despite urging former Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami to form the committee, he failed to do so. “Tamil Nadu became one of the States with a high number of cases of assault against Adi-Dravidar communities. According to the 2017 National Crime Record Bureau, Tamil Nadu stood third in India for the number of cases of atrocities against Scheduled Castes, with 170 riot incidents and 246 victims. Similarly, when it came to atrocities against Adi-Dravidar women, Tamil Nadu came first with 55 women being sexually assaulted. We hope the situation changes during the present government’s tenure,” he said.
He said the State government should pass relevant orders before the Budget session in the Assembly to ensure that the committee meets four times a year at the district level.
