Victim Compensation in India: Issues and Challenges

From the very inception of the judicial system, a court’s primary function has been one of discovery, affirmation, and establishing truth. Does the responsibility of the State towards the victim end with the registration of a case, its investigation, prosecution for conviction, and then sentencing? Does this extend further beyond that? Principles of fair trial under criminal jurisprudence pose requirements for justice not only to the accused but also to the victim. This requires a fine judicial balancing between the rights of the accused, the victim, and the interests of society. Justice must be restorative, rehabilitative to the victim, but reformative to the offender. Victims have a legitimate expectation of receiving financial compensation as well as rehabilitative support. Even when the legal system fails to identify the perpetrator or even gather enough evidence toward a conviction, the duty to compensate the victim is due. Though the states have implemented Victim Compensation Schemes in India but there is varying compensation amounts with respect to similar crimes in different victim compensation schemes which further leads to denial of their rights.