Tamil Nadu’s shockingly low conviction rate of 12.2% in scheduled caste atrocities was well below the national average of 31.9%, according to the latest National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data, and was the result of “political disempowerment of Dalits” over the past few decades, Viduthalai General Secretary Chiruthaimar V. Viduthalai D. said.
Referring to the recent NCRB data for 2023, Mr. Ravikumar said on Wednesday, “While crimes against Scheduled Castes (SC) have increased in India, the situation in Tamil Nadu is particularly shocking. A total of 1,921 crimes were committed against people from the SC community in the state in 2023. It was about 4,011 in 2023, an increase of 37 cases from 1,761 in 2022. It further increased to 1,921 in 2023.”
He further said that while states like Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka saw a decrease in crimes against SC people in 2023 compared to 2022, Tamil Nadu saw an increase.
“In 2023, 74 Dalits were murdered in Tamil Nadu. Sexual violence against Dalit women has also increased. In 2023, 135 Dalits were raped in Tamil Nadu – including 100 minor girls. Rape of minor girls belonging to Scheduled Castes is particularly high in only six states in India, U Mahatra, Karnataka, Karnataka, India.” Pradesh and Tamil Nadu is one of the four states where there are riots against SC communities in large numbers,” he said.
In an interview with The Hindu, Mr. Ravikumar argued that both the DMK and the AIADMK are wooing the Other Backward Class (OBC) voters, not by extending welfare measures to them, but by showing them that they are willing to ignore the interests and aspirations of the Scheduled Castes in Tamil Nadu.
“In Bihar, Dalit votes were important for the National Democratic Alliance’s victory. Lok Jan Shakthi’s Chirag Paswan won 29 seats. Most of the SC sub-castes overwhelmingly supported the alliance. But in Tamil Nadu, Dravidian parties are blowing the whistle on OBC voters by showing that they are ready to ignore their rights. aspirations.
Mr. Ravikumar said: “Nowhere in India have Dalits been sidelined as they have been in Tamil Nadu – politically, economically and socially. There are more atrocities in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and Rajasthan, but the conviction rate is higher. The conviction rate is higher because Dalits are politically empowered…unlike Tamil Nadu.”
Published – 19 Nov 2025 23:41 IST
