The Supreme Court on Monday upheld the constitutional validity of the SC/ST Amendment Act, 2018.
Hearing a batch of PIL, an apex court bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra said a preliminary inquiry is not mandatory before registering a case under the act and the approval of senior police officials is not needed.
Justice Ravindra Bhat, the other member of the bench, said in a concurring verdict that every citizen needs to treat fellow citizens equally and foster the concept of fraternity.
Justice Bhat said a court can quash the FIR if a prima facie case is not made out under the SC/ST Act and the liberal use of anticipatory bail will defeat the intention of Parliament.
Several PILs were filed in the top court challenging the validity of the SC/ST Amendment Act of 2018, which had diluted the provisions of the stringent Act.