The “Rights of the Victims” for
assistance
The right to attend
criminal justice
proceedings:
• A victim’s right to attend the trial is
often limited in cases where the
victim is also a witness in the
criminal case
• This rule was designed to prevent
witnesses from being influenced by
the testimony of other witnesses in
the case.
Differentiating two legal terms
The right to apply for
compensation


Crime victim compensation should
be a government program
designed to reimburse victims of
violent crime for their out-ofpocket expenses relating to the
crime.
affected family members may also
be eligible for limited
compensation.

Compensation can be paid even
when no one is arrested or
convicted for the crime.

Compensation programs will be
medical expenses, counseling
expenses, lost wages, and funeral
expenses.
The Right To Restitution

The term "restitution" generally refers to
restoration of the harm caused by the
defendant, most commonly in the form of
payment for damages. It can also refer to
the return or repair of property stolen or
damaged in the course of the crime.

Courts to order restitution by convicted
offenders as part of their sentences.

But in several Indian cases the word
“compensation” has been used to refer
to “restitution” which is the accepted
terminology by the international scholars
for payment made by offenders to victims
of crime.
As observed by Chock-lingam (1993: 74),
the Indian courts use the term
“compensation” to refer to restitution as
well as the real compensation, wherein
the money is paid to the victim by the
state or other agency for abuse of power.
Sarup Singh v. State of
Haryana (AIR 1995 SC
2452)
Compensation denied, 1984
Sikh riot victim turns to
court:
…


Manjit Singh who’s uncle, was
burnt alive, his father Nath Singh
(now dead) received burn injuries
and his brother Gurcharan Singh
was thrown in a truck already on

fire.

asked the court to direct the
government to issue him an exgratia payment of Rs. 7 Lakh as
per the rehabilitation package
announced by Union
government

Matter passed from Union to
Punjab government then to
deputy commissioner, but Manjit
hasn't yet heard from the
government.

The apex court while reducing the
sentence for the period already
undergone by the accused under Section
304 IPC, directed to pay a sum of Rs.
20000 by way of compensation
The court further emphasized that the
amount of compensation was enhanced
taking into consideration the gravity of
the injury, the strata to which the
accused belongs, the social environment
in which the crime has taken place and
further keeping in view the cry of the
society for the victims at large.
An analysis of the above case laws gives
an indication that the courts in India, at
least at the higher level, have started
realizing the importance of the victim
and the necessity to ameliorate the plight
of the victim to the extent possible by
restitution.
RIGHT TO BE HEARD
 Such participation by which victims play a proactive role in the criminal
justice process .
 When a crime victim is allowed to speak at the sentencing hearing, there is
an acknowledgment by the criminal justice system of the personal nature
of the crime and of the harm suffered.
THE RIGHT TO
BE INFORMED
 The criminal justice system is
required to give victims or their
families the right to be notified of
important,
scheduled
criminal
proceedings and the outcomes of
those proceedings. Notify victims
when hearings have been cancelled
and rescheduled.
 Victims may must have the right to
be informed of various legal rights,
including the rights to: attend a
proceeding and/or submit a victim
impact statement; sue the offender
for money damages in the civil
justice system.etc.
Assistance to victims of crime is of
great significance because victims
have suffered irreparable damages
and harm as a result of crime. The
problems of crime victims and the
impact of crime on them is varied
and complex
THE RIGHT TO A
SPEEDY TRIAL
 Delay in disposal of cases is considered as
one of the most vexed and worrying
problem.
 In Anil Rai vs. State of Bihar case, Sethi
J stated that Delay in disposal of the
cases facilitates the people to raise
eyebrows, sometime genuinely, which
if not checked, may shake the
confidence of the people in this judicial
system.
 On average 50 lakh crimes are registered
every year, which are sought to be
investigated by the police. The pendency of
criminal cases in subordinate courts is 1.32
crore and the effective strength of judges is
12,177. Pending cases of the under trials in
criminal cases are 1.44 crores. In an average
19 percent of the pending cases, disposed
every year (statistics by Justice- B.P.Singh
J) India Today
 BHOPAL Gas tragedy and delay in justice:
Twenty years on from the ghastly incident,
victims’ fight continues for a
compensation that fail to measure up to
the damage caused to them by a huge
margin.
THE RIGHT TO ENFORCEMENT/REMEDIES OF
VICTIMS
 Twenty years on from the ghastly incident, victims’ fight continues for a
compensation that fail to measure up to the damage caused to them by a
huge margin
 Creation of a designated entity to receive, investigates, and attempts to
resolve crime victim complaints. There must be state victim advocate or a
committee or board.
 Give the investigatory agency the ability to impose consequences on
offending agencies or officials found to have violated a victim’s rights.
……
Our chief objective through the Centre of Victimology is to ensure
proper assistance to the victims so that their rights are restored.