Revisiting Indian Victim Compensation Law: Need For An Independent Victim Law

Abstract

Compensatory jurisprudence is an emerging concept of the criminal justice delivery system in the recent times. The guiding principle of the recognition of the victim’s right to compensation is to address the awful impact of the commission of crime upon the victim. This new development of the criminal justice system towards recognition of victim’s right to compensation stems from judicial pronouncements and recommendations made by the reports of various committees and commissions constituted by the Government, from time to time, to inquire into the existing criminal justice system. Due to the emergence of compensatory jurisprudence, both the Union and State Governments have formulated and notified various victim compensation schemes aimed at developing a legislative framework for the recognition of victim’s right to compensation in India. However, the major weakness of the recent law is that the rights of victim are thinly projected and it leaves the provision of compensation to the sole discretion of the judge. The present paper explores the legal framework recognizing victim’s right to compensation and a need of constitutionalisation of victim’s rights. Further, the paper discusses the difficulties of the victims of crime in getting compensation under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and non-exercise of discretionary power by the trial Courts. This paper also evaluates emerging need of an independent victim legislation to recognize the rights of the victim in par with those of the accused.