Compensate rape, acid victims, says Bombay HC

Mumbai: The Bombay high court on Wednesday asked the state to increase compensations due to rape survivors and acid-attack victims under its Manodhairya scheme, along the lines of Goa, where the compensation is around Rs 10 lakh. The public prosecutor however said that was not possible as Maharashtra was a very big state. The HC also asked the state to pay within 15 days compensation of one lakh rupees to each of the 85-odd rape survivors/acid-attack victims in Maharashtra as per the scheme. The court questioned the state over the delay in the payments. As per the rules under the Manodhairya scheme, the state has to pay one lakh rupees to rape survivors/acid-attack victims once the police register a case.

A division bench of chief justice Dr Manjula Chellur and Justice G S Kulkarni was hearing a petition filed by Forum Against Oppression of Women and a 14-year-old rape victim who claimed that the state had failed to pay her compensation as per the Manodhairya scheme on the grounds that she had “consensual sex”. The petitioner also said that she had not received any counselling which is a requisite element of the scheme.

After going through the compensation report, the court directed the state to release the compensation amount within 15 days and ensure that the same is followed in the future.

The court also came down heavily on the police for not doing enough to create awareness of the scheme. The bench directed the police to create awareness and publicise the scheme.

The matter has been kept for hearing on April 5.