In Brief
The appellant was accused of abusing a revenue official by his caste name inside an office during a dispute about a land document. The case was registered under provisions of the SC-ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act requiring the offence to occur 'in any place within public view'. The High Court dismissed the appellant's petition to quash proceedings without addressing whether the office interior met this requirement. The Supreme Court allowed the appeal, holding that an incident inside an office chamber without members of the public present does not constitute a place 'within public view'. The Court quashed all proceedings as the allegations, even accepted at face value, did not prima facie constitute the offence.
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