By Khushi Malhotra and Bageshri Banerjee
In 2016, a 10-year-old girl in Chennai was two blocks away from home when she was lured into a shop and raped by a stranger. The girl survived, but she never went out to play again.
“For the past seven years, she has not crossed the threshold of her room to even sit with us in the living room,” said her father. “She only steps out for school.”
The family filed a case against the perpetrator and after a year-long legal battle, the survivor got a compensation of Rs. 30,000 under the Tamil Nadu Victim Compensation Scheme. She was not informed about the Rs. 3 lakhs a rape victim is entitled to. under the scheme or a claim under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) act.
“She could’ve received an extra Rs. 10,000 to support her education,” said the probation officer looking over her case. “Her injuries weren’t great enough for the additional fund.”
A victim of crimes such as assault, rape, acid attack, etc., is entitled to a maximum of Rs. 3.5 lakhs from the state government.
The survivor is not alone, the victims of such crimes largely remain unaware of the provisions of Tamil Nadu’s victim compensation scheme.
In the last five years, only 550 victims or their families have received compensation from the fund. The Tamil Nadu government currently has Rs. 27.9 crore accumulated in its fund to compensate the victims, according to documents seen by the BottomLine.
The exact number of victims left to be compensated is not clear, said a senior official from Tamil Nadu Prison. The prisoner’s sentence may end, but the victim’s compensation might be pending, he added.
Under the scheme, the prison department of Tamil Nadu can provide their share of a maximum of Rs 50,000 to an aggrieved from a pool of funds called the Victim Compensation Fund. The money accumulated in this fund comes from 20% of the prisoner’s wages, according to Section 357A of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
After verifying the victim’s claims, the State or the District Authority needs to provide adequate compensation to victims within two months.
According to the survivors/ aggrieved families, it takes a year or more for the court proceeding to take place, after which they are informed about the fund by the prison department. If the department in charge does not reach out to them, most victims are unaware of the existence of such funds.
The application process can take more than six months, after which the victims have to collect the money from the prison, said a prison lawyer who doesn’t wish to be named. “People are less likely to visit the prison to collect the funds.”