Criminal Law (Amendment) Act ,2013 in the light of Acid Attacks

 

Authoer: Nikita Sharma, Jayoti Vidhyapeeth Women's University 

INTRODUCTION

The word 'crime' has made such a significant place that this word remains on everyone's tongue. Who can be blamed for this? The answer in the simple words is that crime is not a creature of God, it is one of a creature of human beings. This is the worst invention ever made by humans. Human beings are only one who is responsible for the heinous crime which made our life difficult to live safely and peacefully. There was a time when acid was used for household purposes only but now it's work has been reformed and used for destroying the whole life of people.

Acid throwing is one of the most dangerous and life-destroying crimes in the world. This crime is increasing day by day and as usual most of the victims are women. The number of acid attack cases reported across India was 182 in 2020.  (Kanwal, Sanyukta. “• India: acid attack cases 2020.” Statista, Available at :https://www.statista.com/statistics/1103056/india-acid-attack-cases/) Acid attacks are carried out due to biased attitudes. There is no national database to statistically track cases of acid violence. To deal with acid violence in perpetuity, reliable statistics are needed. According to research by Acid Survivors Foundation India, estimates range from 500 to 1,000 cases in a year. In India, there are 28 states and 7 union territories, giving a figure of about 350 cases per year, excluding unreported incidents. These undisclosed reasons must be addressed if acid attack and other forms of violence against women and girls are to be challenged and eradicated [ Mamta Patel, “ A desire to disfigure: Acid Attack in India”,7 IJCAST, 2(2014)] According to the Law Commission of India, 174 cases of acid attacks were reported in India in 2000 [Law Commission of India, 226th Report on the inclusion of Acid Attacks as a specific offences in the Indian Penal Code and a law for compensation for victims of Crime(July,2009)]

 Thirty-five cases of acid attacks were reported in Karnataka between 1999 and 2004.. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, 222 cases were reported in 2015. The percentage of acid attacks has been gradually increasing.

Acid attack is a form of violence against women in which a person usually throws acid on her face with a mala fide intention to seriously injure her and disrupt her socio-economic life.

This is usually done due to the rejection of sexual promotions, affair proposals, etc., According to Acid Survivors Trust International, there are 15,000 cases of acid attacks worldwide and 80% of them involve women as a sex offender. Also, the actual number of cases is likely to exceed more but it was not reported due to fear.

CRIMINAL LAW (AMENDEMENT) ACT, 2013

Previously, there was no any specific provision related to acid attack .The Section 326 of the Indian Penal Code deals with voluntarily Causing Grievous Hurt by Dangerous Weapons or Means was not as effective as it to be in dealing with this form of crime because it does not include any specific provision for acid attack.

The scope of the section 326 is narrow but it does not deal with the issue of acid attack because:

It does not cover the various kinds of injuries caused due to an acid attack

The section does not contain provision for the act of administering acid attack to any person.

The section also does not specify to whom the fine should be awarded.

The section does not punish a person who throws or attempts to throw acid, but no injury is caused, that is there is no punishment for intentional act.

But Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 made special provisions for victims of acid attack by inserting Section 326A and Section 326B in the Indian Penal Code, 1860. The eighteenth law commission of India, headed by Justice A.R. Lakshmanan, proposed a new section 326A and section 326B in the India Penal Code and section 114B of the Indian Evidence Act.

Section 326A of Indian Penal Code (Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013) states that whoever causes permanent or partial damage or deformity to, or bums or maims or disfigures or disables, any part of the body of a person or causes grievous hurt by throwing acid or by administering acid to any person, or by using any other means with the intention of causing and with the knowledge that he is likely to cause such injury or hurt, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than ten years but which may extend to imprisonment for life, and with fine; or with both

It is provided that such fine shall be just and reasonable to meet the medical expenses of the treatment of the victim;

 It is further provided that any fine imposed under this section shall be paid to the victim.

SECTION 326 B OF Indian Penal Code  (Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013) states that whoever throws or attempts to throw acid on any person or administer acid to any person, or attempts to use any other means with the intention of causing permanent or partial damage or deformity  or maiming or disfigurement or disability or grievous hurt to that person, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than five years but which may extend to seven years or shall be liable for fine.

The explanation 1 of this section says that for the purposes of section 326A and 326B, “acid” includes any substance which has acidic or corrosive character or burning nature which can cause bodily injury leading to scars or disfigurement or partial or permanent disability.

The explanation 2 of this section says that for the purposes of section 326A and 326B, permanent or partial damage or deformity shall not be required to be irreversible.

Section 326A imposes punishment on person who throw acid which shall not be less than 10 years of imprisonment but which may extend to imprisonment for life or with a fine while section 326B imposes punishment on the person who attempts to throw acid which shall not be less than 5 years of imprisonment but which may extend to 7 years of imprisonment or with a fine.

SECTION 114B OF INDIAN EVIDENCE ACT ( inserted by Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013)states that if a person has thrown acid on, or administered acid to any person,  the court shall presume that such  act has been done with the intention or knowledge that such an act is likely to cause such hurt or injury as is stated in Section 326 A of the Indian Penal Code.

This amendment has made specific provision for punishment to the offenders of acid attack. It is somewhere creating a fear in the minds of offenders of such a heinous crime.

COMPENSATION TO VICTIMS OF ACID ATTACK UNDER CrPC

The crime of acid attack is prosecuted not only by the IPC and the Indian Evidence Act but also by some relevant provisions of the CrPC. These provisions are contained in Section 375A of the Code of Criminal Procedure which are given as follows-

Sub-section (1) compels state governments to introduce schemes which provide compensation to the victims of acid attack who need rehabilitation, and this shall be done under the guidance of the Central Government.

Sub-section (2) states that under the recommendation of the court, the District Legal Services Authority or the State Legal Services Authority (depending on the case) may determine the amount of compensation to be provided for rehabilitation of the victims.

Sub-section (3) indicates that at the discretion of the court, if the compensation for the rehabilitation of the victim appears to be unsatisfactory, or in the case of acquittal of accused, the court may still recommend the necessary compensation to the victim.

Sub-section (4) further states the rights granted to victims. It says about cases where the alleged culprit cannot be absconded, but can be identified then in such a case, the victim may make a written request for compensation from the state legal services authority or district legal services authority.

Sub-section (5) further discusses the proper exercise of the rights mentioned in sub-section (4). It authorizes the state or district legal services authority to allow compensation to such victims after conducting a proper investigation.

Finally, sub-section (6) states that the state or district legal services authority should endeavor to provide free medical treatment to the victim.

CASES OF ACID ATTACKS IN INDIA

Lakshmi Vs. Union of India and Others (Lakshmi Vs. Union of India and Others 2014 SCC 4 427)

In Lakshmi Vs. Union of India (2015) a girl, Lakshmi who was 16 years old when she suffered such a heinous crime that is acid attack. The reason for such an attack was the refusal of the marriage proposal by Laxmi. She was courageous, she filed a PIL in the Supreme Court in 2006 and she demanded not only seeking compensation but also to enact new laws and amend law relating to acid attacks in India.

The apex court gave judgement in her favor and directed the state governments and central government to enact legislation after due deliberation. By observing that both the governments were not complying with the matter, the Supreme Court took the matter into its own hands and issued guidelines by itself. According to that guidelines, acid should not be sold to anyone who is under the age of majority i.e. under 18 years of age. Proof of identity was mandatory for purchasing acid.

Piyali Dutta v. State of West Bengal  (Piyali Dutta v. West Bengal State W. P. 26174(W) of 2014)

In  Piyali Dutta v.  State of West Bengal,  Piyali Dutta filed an application in the High Court as she did not receive compensation despite appealing to the Chief Secretary for compensation as she was also one of the victim of acid attack .The Hon'ble High Court passed the order in her favor and asked the authority to pay her compensation to the victim.

Preeti Rathi case(State of Maharashtra v. Ankur Panwar  Decided in September 201)

In State of Maharashtra v. Ankur Panwar  is related to a 23-year-old nurse who was working in a hospital. She was approached by the accused for marriage, but she denied marrying him as she wanted to focus on her career. The accused could not handle the denial and threw acid on her when she was traveling in the train. She suffered fatal injuries. She was hospitalized for a month, but later she died.

 This case was one of very special cases and therefore the hearing of this case was headed by a woman judge, Justice A.S. Shinde. She was shocked that the acid attack can be so terrible that it can cause death. Initially, he was sentenced to death but was later commuted to life imprisonment with compensation to the victim's parents.

CONCLUSION

An acid attack has a long lasting effect on the life of the victim. It is a crime which wholly destroys the life of the victim. After getting too many medical treatments also the victim was not able to regain her as she was before. So, in my opinion, the punishment for the same must be more rigorous.

The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 included punishment for those people who practice this form of crime but the amendment was not that effective because after this amendment also people use to do such kind of practice .So the best punishment will be to do same thing with culprits as they did with victims that is retribution theory of punishment should be followed so that they could realize the real pain. They should give punishment by throwing acid on their face so that not only offenders but also others don't even think to commit such a heinous crime. According to me, this will be the best punishment which can be awarded to them.