The Supreme Court’s searching queries on elusive justice for acid attack victims highlights a serious failure of the legal system. Shocked at the slow pace at which the horrific crime predominantly affecting women is dealt with, a two-judge bench presided over by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant has directed registrars of High Courts to provide details of pending trials in acid attack cases and asked the Solicitor General of India to consider proposing amendments to the law on disabilities in order to help the victims—who are often left blinded and crippled by corrosive chemicals. It is disturbing that in the case before the court, the victim was awaiting a verdict in Delhi for 16 years with no apparent progress in the trial. Nationally, there were 207 cases involving 220 victims of acid throwing just in 2023, with West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, and Gujarat holding the top three spots. Evidently, the crime of acid throwing, committed mostly by men whose marriage proposals or advances were rejected by women, is relegated to the fringes of public discussion because the terribly disfigured victims withdraw from social activities. They survive on meagre support from families and NGOs. Surprisingly, few questions have been raised in both houses of Parliament over the past decade. Both the erstwhile Indian Penal Code and the Bharatiya Nyaya Samhita have similar sections on acid attacks, prescribing a minimum of 10 years’ imprisonment and a maximum of life in prison with a fine for attacks causing harm and five to seven years’ imprisonment for attacks or attempts. This indicates that no special effort went into making the provisions stricter, such as including vendors who unlawfully provide corrosive chemicals.
It is a big step forward that the Supreme Court has taken up the issue of states dropping the ball on acid attack trials. Yet, there are connected issues that also require judicial monitoring. Including the victims under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act will bring some relief, but the lack of uniformity in victim compensation across states and the absence of a provision to meet their full medical treatment and rehabilitation costs need rectification. Moreover, acid attacks are made possible by the easy availability of the chemical, which can be stopped only by operationalising the curbs promised by the Union government a decade ago. It is essential to see whether there are gaps in the battery supply and recycling chains and sale of solvents, making acid easily available. On the medical front, good facilities, including plastic surgery, are absent in non-metropolitan centres to rehabilitate victims. Also, treatment should be free in public and private hospitals. A more broad-based agenda would be to reduce violence in society by building individual capability and providing opportunities to youth. Prosecuting the many long-pending cases is a good first step, but an end to acid attacks needs to become a political priority.
