Compensation for victims of VAW Majlis 28-8-2011

The consultation was organised by Majlis in association with the National Commission for Women was held on 28th August, 2011 in Mumbai. Below are the pictures.

Justice A. K Ganguly, Judge, Supreme Court delivered the key note address. He also released the Majlis Publication - Defending a Woman's Right to Maintenance – A handbook for judges and lawyers.

Adv. Flavia Agnes, Director, Majlis initiated the Inaugural Session by giving an overview of the Scheme for Relief and Rehabilitation for rape victims by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, which is currently in the process of being implemented in Maharashtra. She highlighted loopholes in the scheme, including the over emphasis on recording of an FIR and uncertainty of regarding the sanction of funds for the same.

Justice A. M. Khanwilkar, Judge, Bombay High Court chaired the session on “Compensation Schemes in Various States.” Dr. Mridul Eapen, Hon. Fellow Centre for Development Studies and Former Member of State Planning Commission highlighted the need for NGOs and women’s organizations to work closely with government organizations in order to evolve an effective compensation scheme. Dr. Pam Rajput, Director, Women’s Resource and Advocacy Centre, Chandigarh drew attention to a PIL filed in the Punjab and Haryana High Court on the implementation of S. 357A and the subsequent notification issued by the Government of Punjab on the same.

Mr. Ravi Patil, Deputy Commissioner, Dept. of Women and Child Welfare, Maharashtra discussed the progress of the Maharashtra government on the implementation of the Scheme. The session was followed by an open session wherein the shortcomings of the aforesaid schemes were highlighted and discussed.
The session titled “Negotiations with Courts and the State” was chaired by Human Rights Advocate, Vrinda Grover. Adv. Aparna Bhat, Human Rights Lawyer discussed the case filed by Delhi Commission for Women on compensation for rape victims. She also discussed compensation for victims of acid attacks. Adv. Sheela Ramanathan, from Bangalore spoke about her experiences in defending victims of acid attacks and the urgent need for compensation to such victims. She also highlighted that the Karnataka State Commission for Women is the only commission in the country that provides compensation to victims of acid attacks.

Dr. Rajat Mitra, Clinical Psychologist spoke about the need for counseling and psychiatric help to women victims of crime and his experiences working with such women. Further, he highlighted that such psychological intervention helps the victim depose in court and helps the police in investigation.
80 participants, including lawyers, social workers, academicians and students braved the heavy rains in Mumbai on that day to attend the consultation.