The Congress in Gujarat today said there is "great unease" and a feeling of "insecurity" among Dalits in the aftermath of a recent Supreme Court order related to the SC/ST Act.
The Opposition party sought Governor O P Kohli's intervention in the alleged dilution of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, saying the court verdict would lead to an increase in atrocities on Dalits.
A Congress delegation, led by state party president Amit Chavda and Leader of Opposition Paresh Dhanani, called on the Governor at Gandhinagar and handed over a memorandum demanding his intervention in the issue.
In the memorandum, Congress leaders claimed "there is great unease and a feeling of insecurity amongst the members of the Dalit community and other oppressed classes after the apex court judgement."
If immediate steps are not taken by the government, "then, we are afraid, this may turn into something not less than a national disaster," they said.
"Thus, we seek your immediate intervention in this regard and urge you to take steps to help Dalits of our country tide over the existing crisis," the party said in the memorandum.
The apex court, in a March 20 order, said government servants should not be arrested under the Act without prior sanction and private citizens, too, should be arrested only after an inquiry under the law.
The verdict is being seen by Dalit organisations and some political parties as "dilution" of the special law which came into force in 1989.
The Congress admitted certain sections of the Act are being misused, but maintained there should be no diversion from its original provisions as a large number of Dalits still face discrimination and atrocities across the country.
According to the Congress, the judgement came at a time when "Dalits are facing a distressful situation and many families stand devastated because of the atrocities committed on Dalits in every nook and corner of the country."
A nationwide bandh, called yesterday by Dalit groups to protest the "dilution" of the act, witnessed large-scale violence in states like Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan.
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