SC seeks modification in compensation scheme

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that a scheme proposed by the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) for compensating victims of sexual assault and acid attack should be modified to “some extent” to make it applicable to child victims of such assaults.

A bench of justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta said that slight modifications could be done in the ‘Compensation Scheme for Women Victims/ Survivors of Sexual Assault/ Other Crimes-2018’ to also include child victims.

“The scheme can be implemented with slight modifications in case of children. Please have a look at it and give us a composite note for women as well as children,” the bench told senior advocate Indira Jaising, who is assisting the court as an amicus curiae in the matter.

One of the lawyers told the bench that the NALSA’s scheme should also focus on child victims of sexual assaults.

Jaising said the scheme has been approved by the top court and its purpose was to support women victims of sexual assaults and acid attacks throughout the trial in the case.

She also told the bench that states would have to understand the rationale behind this scheme.

Regarding the court’s observation to also include children of sexual assaults under the scheme, Jaising said she would file a note in this regard.

The bench, while saying that the Centre, all states and union territories should implement the scheme with letter and spirit, asked Jaising to file her note within two weeks.

NEWDELHI: