Published on : 03 Nov 2025, 1:37 pm 3 min read

The Supreme Court recently granted anticipatory bail to a 55-year-old man accused of assault and caste-based abuse, after finding that the first information report (FIR) did not contain any allegation of a casteist remark [ Sidhan @ Sidharathan vs. State of Kerala & Anr. ].

A Bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria said it was “rather surprising” that the police had invoked the SC/ST Act against the petitioner for using the word "bastard" - which does not amount to a caste-based slur.

It also noted that it was because of the invocation of the SC/ST Act that the Kerala High Court prima facie rejected his anticipatory bail application.

“It is rather surprising to note that though there was no allegation of any caste

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