Acid attack victims entitled to relief under PM scheme: HC

Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 18

Acid attack victims are entitled to Rs 1 lakh compensation from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund Scheme over and above Rs 3 lakh prescribed by the Haryana Government, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has ruled.

The ruling by Justice Rakesh Kumar Jain came on a petition against the Union of India and other respondents by a mother and daughter duo, victims of acid attack.

They were seeking compensation over and above Rs 3 lakh prescribed under the Relief and Rehabilitation of Women Acid Victims floated by Haryana Women and Child Development Department.

A case for throwing acid and other offences was registered against three persons on December 15, 2014,  under Sections 326-A, 452 and 120-B of the Indian Penal Code at Palam Vihar in Gurugram.

Two of the convicts were sentenced to life imprisonment while the third was acquitted by an Additional Sessions Judge in January 2017.

The Bench was told that the Haryana Government’s scheme provided for Rs 3 lakh maximum compensation with 100 per cent free treatment from any government or approved hospital. Preference was to be given to victims in allotment of fair price shops by the Food and Supply Department.

A monthly financial assistance of Rs 8,000 was also provided for. Besides this, the Government of India also floated Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund Scheme to give Rs 1 lakh compensation. The counsel for the petitioners submitted that they received Rs 3 lakh each under the Haryana Government scheme.

The amount of Rs 1 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund Scheme was declined on the ground that the scheme came into operation on November 9, 2016, whereas the incident occurred on December 15, 2014.

Referring to notification dated October 27, 2016, the counsel added that acid attack victims were to get maximum of Rs 3 lakh under normal circumstances, but the amount was to be increased by 50 per cent if the victim was aged less than 14.

After hearing the submissions, Justice Jain asserted that he was in full agreement with the contention raised by counsel for the petitioners. As such, it was held that the petitioner-daughter deserved to be paid an additional Rs 1.5 lakh as she was less than 14 at the time of occurrence.

Justice Jain observed: “In a social welfare state where the Government of India is trying to ameliorate the grievances of deprived sections of society, declining payment of compensation of Rs 1 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund Scheme only on the ground that the occurrence is prior to the decision taken by the Government of India is not justified.”