The Delhi High Court on Thursday sought the city government's response on a plea seeking enhancement of compensation provided to victims of child sexual abuse under the 2011 Delhi Victims Compensation Scheme.
The Delhi High Court on Thursday sought the city government's response on a plea seeking enhancement of compensation provided to victims of child sexual abuse under the 2011 Delhi Victims Compensation Scheme.
A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and Ashutosh Kumar issued notice to Delhi government and sought its reply on the plea filed on behalf of a minor boy who was sodomised by three senior students of his school.
The petition has claimed the compensation of Rs 50,000 awarded to the 13-year-old boy under the head of child abuse was "arbitrary, grossly inadequate and discriminatory" as a minor female would be entitled to compensation of Rs three lakh under the head of rape for a similar crime.
"The impugned schedule (of the scheme) also effectively discriminates against male and female victims, as a minor female may be entitled to compensation of Rs three lakh under the head of rape whereas a male victim will only be entitled to compensation of Rs 50,000 under the head of child abuse," the plea said.
The petition sought directions to the government to reformulate the 2011 scheme with an enhanced and rational one, alleging that in its current format it is "contrary to articles 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution of India".
It alleged that the scheme suffers from the "vices of vagueness, lack of clarity, arbitrariness, unfair discrimination and non-application of mind". It also sought directions to the government to adopt the scale of compensation of Rs 10 lakh that has been notified by the state of Goa.
It further sought compensation of Rs 10 lakh for the minor boy, saying he was a victim of a brutal sexual assault which resulted in him undergoing "immense and irreparable physical and psychological trauma and his parents suffered severe financial hardship as an aftermath of the incident".
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