Acid attacks: SC orders more compensation for victims, regulation of sale

The Supreme Court today directed state governments to ensure the treatment and rehabilitation of acid attack victims and also raised the amount of compensation to be paid to victims to Rs 3 lakh. The apex court while raising the compensation amount to be paid to victims also said that of the total compensation amount of Rs 3 lakh, the first installment of Rs one lakh should be given to the victim within 15 days of the attack. Perusing the compensation schemes of 17 states and seven UTs, the bench observed that the amount which is being paid is “grossly inadequate”. “It cannot be overlooked that acid attack victims need to undergo a series of plastic surgeries and other corrective treatment. Having regard to this, the Solicitor General suggested to us that the compensation amount to be paid by states to acid attack victims must be enhanced to at least Rs three lakh. “The suggestion is very fair. We accordingly direct that the acid attack victims shall be paid a compensation of at least Rs three lakh by the state government concerned as an after-care and rehabilitation cost for such victims,” the court said. “The balance of Rs two lakh shall be paid by the state or Union Territory concerned as expeditiously as possible and positively within two months of the incident,” it said, adding that the compliance of the order has to be ensured by the Chief Secretaries of the states and administrators of the UTs respectively. [caption id=“attachment_965925” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Acid won’t be freely available any more. A man and his wife at a unit packing acid in Ahmedabad. AFP[/caption] A bench comprising justices RM Lodha and SJ Mukhopadhya also directed state governments to frame rules to regulate the sale of acid and other corrosive substances within three months. Among the directives from the court, were provisions that minors should not be allowed to purchase acid and retailers should seek photo identity from buyers of acid. The bench, in its interim directions, said that the licenced seller of acids and corrosive substances will have to maintain a log/register pertaining to the sale of acid. It also said that sellers will have to disclose their stock to the authorities concerned, otherwise the undeclared stock would be confiscated and “a suitable fine of upto Rs 50,000 shall be imposed on such sellers”. However, the court said that educational institutes, research laboratories, hospitals, government departments and public sector undertakings could acquire in bulk acids a and corrosive substances by following certain guidelines. “All such institutions/departments shall maintain a register regarding such substances and file the same with the Sub-Divisional Magistrate concerned,” it said, adding that a person of that institute/department shall be made accountable for the custody of such substances. The court also made it clear that there shall be compulsory checking of students /personnel who have been allowed access to such places. “The Chief Secretaries of respective states and administrators of each Union Territory shall ensure compliance of this order expeditiously and frame rules within three months after receiving the model draft rules from the central government,” it said. The bench also asked the central and state governments to work together and make the necessary rules under the Poison Act, 1919 for making acid attack a non-bailable offence. The bench, which is hearing a PIL filed in 2006 by Delhi-based acid attack victim Laxmi who was then a minor, also passed a slew of interim directions on various issues including sale of acids. During the hearing, Solicitor General Mohan Parasaran said that the states of Punjab, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Haryana, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya have already framed rules to regulate the sale of acids and corrosive substances The court’s directives came after the Centre told it that it had framed rules, under an existing law, to regulate retail sale of acid and other poisonous substances. As _Firstpost_ had pointed out the mere framing of laws to curb the sale of acid won’t help end such attacks, most of which are directed at women, but many of the directives from the Supreme Court today could help make prevent the offence in the future.