For the past seven years, the Special Court in Pudukkottai designated to try cases under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act has been functioning without a permanent judge, severely affecting the trial of caste-based violence cases, advocates and activists have said.
The Special Court was established in early 2018 and briefly had a permanent judge before the post fell vacant following a transfer. Since then, the court has been functioning under in-charge judges, even as court staff, a public prosecutor, and other support personnel remain in place.
The prolonged vacancy has come into focus amid delays in high-profile cases, including the Vengaivayal incident of December 26, 2022, in which human faece was found mixed in the drinking water tank of a Scheduled Caste settlement. Though the case was registered promptly, it was transferred to the CB-CID on January 14, 2023, and the investigation — involving DNA profiling and voice sample analysis — required repeated approvals from the special court, which was being handled by in-charge judges, causing delays. Earlier this year, the case was moved to the Judicial Magistrate-II court in Pudukkottai after provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act were dropped. The matter remains sub judice.
