KOCHI: In January, Maya suffered serious burns in an acid attack by her husband at Eluvichirrakkunnu, near Muvattupuzha. The 42-year-old homemaker sustained severe injuries to the neck and chest. She was, however, declared out of danger after a month-long treatment at Kottayam Medical College Hospital.
Sajeev, 48, of Kavana, was arrested in connection with the premeditated attack. He absconded following the incident, but was arrested the same day. He was booked under IPC sections 323, for voluntarily causing hurt, and 326-A, for causing grievous hurt by throwing acid.
It was the second marriage of Sajeev and Maya, who both have two kids from their first wedlock. Sajeev suspected Maya of being involved in a relationship outside of marriage, which is believed to have led to the attack.
In what came as a relief for Maya, who has had to bear the mental and physical agony of the ordeal, the Ernakulam District Legal Services Authority awarded a sum of Rs 1 lakh under the Kerala Victim Compensation Scheme. She will receive the amount next week, say officials.
The situation is unfortunately not the same in many other acid-attack cases, which are on the rise in the state. Only 29 victims have availed the compensation since 2016. According to available figures, as many as 113 acid attacks have been reported in the state since 2016.
These left 133 persons injured, and proved fatal for 11. Per the scheme, a person sustaining more than 40% deformity will receive a compensation of Rs 3 lakh while those suffering anything below that will get Rs 1 lakh. A sum of Rs 1 lakh has to be distributed to a victim within 15 days of the incident.
Pavathi Menon, project co-ordinator, Victim Rights Centre, KELSA, said dearth of funds had adversely impacted the compensation plan. “However, the situation changed with the recent High Court intervention, which made Rs 12 crore available with Kerala State Legal Services Authority for distribution to victims under various enactments,” she said. The HC intervention came while considering the plea seeking disbursement of pending compensation to Pocso victims.
Despite the inclusion of sections 326 A and 326 B in the IPC against acid attacks and attempted attacks, jilted lovers and others continue to resort to it. In a majority of cases, men often turn to acid attacks following breakups and rejections, or when suspicions of cheating arise. Recently, 43-year-old CPI leader Sudheer Khan, from Pongumoodu, in Thiruvananthapuram, sustained severe burns in a suspected acid attack by a fellow party leader, Saji Kumar, at his residence. Most attacks seem planned, as procuring the acid takes some time.
Sources said that in some cases, victims do not approach for compensation, keeping the payout pending.
Ernakulam DLSA secretary Renjith Krishnan N, meanwhile, pointed out that compensation is provided to victims of acid attacks coming before DLSA. “Compensation was awarded in three cases reported in the district recently,” he said.
Besides the victim compensation scheme, the state women and child development department also provides a compensation of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2 lakh to victims under its ‘Aswasa Nidhi’ programme. So far, 19 survivors have received the compensation under the scheme.