india

Updated: Jul 20, 2019 02:15 IST

The Supreme Court Friday stayed the proceedings initiated under the SC/ST Act against a woman forest officer in Telangana who was attacked and injured while on duty by a mob, allegedly led by the brother of a ruling TRS MLA.

On June 30, Kagaznagar Forest Range Officer C Anitha was attacked by a mob when she had gone to a village with other officials to plant saplings as part of the government’s ‘Haritha Haram’ green initiative.

The group, allegedly led by brother of a Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) MLA in Komram Bheem Asifabad district, claimed that the land belonged to them.

Later on July 8, Anitha was booked under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act on a complaint filed by a tribal woman, who alleged that the officer and her staff had abused her and others when they were working in their field. The issue cropped up before the apex court when advocate A D N Rao, assisting the top court as an amicus curiae in matters related to forest and environment, brought it to its notice. “We stay the proceedings in the matter registered against the forest officer (Anitha),” the bench said.