In a significant ruling, the Andhra Pradesh High Court has held that Scheduled Caste (SC) members who convert to Christianity cannot invoke protections under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, citing that the caste system is “alien to Christianity.”
The judgment came in response to a plea filed by an individual accused of repeatedly assaulting a Christian pastor. The pastor, who claimed to possess a Scheduled Caste certificate, had alleged that he and his family received death threats from the petitioner. He also asserted that the investigation in the case had been completed.
However, the petitioner approached the High Court seeking to quash the proceedings under the SC/ST Act.
In its ruling on April 30, the High Court observed:
“The SC ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act is a protective legislation introduced for preventing atrocities against members of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.”
The bench emphasized that the pastor, having voluntarily embraced Christianity, could not claim protections under the Act.
“The caste system is alien to Christianity, and the day a person converts, he ceases to be a member of the Scheduled Caste community,” the court noted.
It further added that, “mere non-cancellation of the caste certificate by the authority to a person cannot instil the protection granted” under the SC/ST Act.
Under current Indian law, Scheduled Caste status is restricted to Dalits who profess Hinduism, Sikhism, or Buddhism. Converts to Christianity or Islam are not recognized as SCs, though many Dalit groups have long contested this, arguing that caste-based discrimination transcends religion.
The issue of SC status for Dalits who have converted to Christianity or Islam is currently under consideration by the Supreme Court of India.
Case: Akkala Ram Reddy vs The State of Andhra Pradesh – Available on LAWFYI.IO
