1) If someone from the scheduled caste (SC) or scheduled tribes (ST) is addressed by her/his caste out of habit or because of their occupation, it would then not amount to cruelty under the Prevention of Atrocities Act, the bombay high court ruled recently while granting anticipatory bail to an accused charged under this law.

2) "It is necessary that utterances should be made with the intention to insult/intimidate/humiliate the person on the ground of his/her caste. Sometimes the utterance of a caste and addressing a person by his/her caste may amount to an offence under section 3 of the SC/ST Act, but not necessarily so in each and every case.

the delay in lodging FIR would go against the complainant

if he was aggrieved he should have filed complaint immediatedly . your friend should deny having made any such utterances

No it is not punishable as nobody except the man to whom it was directed heard it. So prosecution, if launched by the person, can be successfully contested in the court. Furthermore, delay of 9 months shrouds the version in suspicion.

1. If a person (gen or OBC ) uses abusive words against a member of SC/ST community in heated argument it shall be presumed by the law that his intention was to defame that person.

2. He cannot take defence that words used by him is very common words prevailing in the society.

3. Intention is the mens rea of the offence committed under SC/ST act.

4. There is clear case of atrocity has been committed and it also under the limitation period.

5. There is three years of limitation period for the offence committed under sc/st act.

1. First of all you clarify whether you belong to that SC OR ST category. If yes then you can not be prosecuted in SC/ST ACT.For prosecution under the said act the offender must be a person of higher caste.

2.Even after 9 month complain can still be lodged.

1) your friend has not called the person Pallan nane of scheduled caste directly

2) for period of 9 months no complaint was filed by sc father

3) no case of cutely is made out as your friend did not intend to humiliate that Sc person

http://www.rediff.com/news/report/calling-someone-by-caste-is-an-offence-says-sc/20110419.htm

From the above link the following has been taken

;

Calling a Dalit by his caste with a view to insulting him or her is an offence under Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act), the Supreme Court has ruled, upholding the conviction of two persons in Tamil Nadu.

In some parts of the state, there is a practice of serving food and beverages in separate tumblers for members of the Dalit and other castes. The accused Arumugam Servai and Ajit Kumar, who belonged to the 'servai" backward caste community, were convicted by the sessions judge Madurai for calling the Dalits Panneerselvam and Mahamani by their caste "pallan" and assaulting them.

"Even calling a person a 'pallan', if used with the intent to insult a member of the Scheduled Caste, is, in our opinion, an offence under Section 3(1)(x) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act), 1989," Justice Katju writing the judgement said

From the above lines it can be seen that calling a dalit as pallan with a view to insult him or to assault him or in a derogatory sense, it can be termed as insult and hence the punishment as found in the said article.

However you have stated that one of your friends while talking with the father of the girl he was engaged during a heated exchange in phone he told him "There is no use in talking to this Pallan".

This was not planned insult or derogatory hence it cannot be termed as an offence, moreover your friend talked to him over phone alone which has not been witnessed by anyone, hence it will be difficult to prove the offence even if booked under pressure.

My friend after speaking to the SC man while handing over tge phone to another person says to that another person"There is no use in talking to this Pallan". Also the links i have givem is the officially recognized caste name in the state. In this circumstance that man states he will produce a call record to get a case registered? Like ashish pointed out only the man heard it from his end but this exchange was between my friend and another person both speaking to that SC man over phone.

As you rightly understood this cannot be an offence at all because he was not intending to insult his father in law neither he spoke to him directly about this. He cannot produce a recorded detail of this call nor he can prosecute him with the improper details and absence of evidence to prove his case.

publication of abusive word either directly to the sc/st person or to any other person with a view to derogate reputation of sc/st person is offence punishable u/s 3 of sc&st act.

main thing of the crime is to derogate the reputation of a person belonging from sc/st community.

publication means bring something in the knowledge of any person, when it is caused it is called publication

If the case is registered then the accused should apply for bail and then contest the case on merits. Phone call recording can be used in evidence in the court.