Delhi govt going to finalise policy to compensate mob lynching victims

NEW DELHI: Delhi government is formulating a compensation policy for dependents of victims of mob lynching and sufferers of mob violence. The compensation may range from Rs 20,000 to Rs 10 lakh. Government officials said that the policy was in an advanced stage and would be notified after the approval of the lieutenant governor and the ministry concerned.
The exercise was started after the Supreme Court asked states to frame a scheme for interim payment to victims within a month of a lynching or mob violence, said one official.
Kin of the victims of lynching would be given Rs 3-10 lakh. Victims of mob violence could get compensation between Rs 20,000 and Rs 5 lakh, depending on the severity of injury. For instance, a person who loses a limb resulting in 20% disability could get Rs 20,000-1 lakh, but an injury resulting in 80% permanent disability could make one eligible for Rs 2-5 lakh. Loss of life could lead to a solatium of Rs 3-10 lakh.
“The reason for varying compensations is due to different conditions such as the financial status of the victim, financial loss caused to the victim’s dependents, number of dependents, age of victim, expense incurred during treatment, etc.,” the official explained.
The word ‘lynching’ is, however, yet to be legally defined. “Currently, the punishment for lynching is meted out under different penal sections for murder. We have left its meaning to the court or the investigating agencies,” said the official. “If they say it is lynching, we will consider it. If they do not say it as lynching, compensation can be sought by a person under the Delhi Victim Compensation Scheme, 2018, for burning, human trafficking, kidnapping, loss of limb, loss of life, etc.”
The Indian Penal Code does not have a separate provision for lynching or murder by a mob, but a case is registered under Section 302 for murder. Experts have in the past said that in the backdrop of increasing lynching cases, there must be a defined provision in the IPC to deal with such crimes.
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha in August to replace the colonial-era Indian Penal Code, has incorporated a specific provision for mob lynching and stipulated punishment ranging from seven years in jail to the death penalty for those convicted of the crime. Clause 101(2) of the BNS Bill defines mob lynching as a group of five or more persons acting in concert committing murder on ground of race, caste or community, sex, place of birth, language, personal belief or other grounds.
At present, under the 2018 policy, compensation is given by the Delhi State Legal Services Authority after examining the credential of claims.