Delhi HC Dismisses Plea Challenging Delhi Govt's Compensation Scheme For Victims Of Delhi Riots

The Division Bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Hari Shankar held that granting compensation is a policy decision and the court would be very slow in interfering with the same.

Moved by Advocate Shashank Deo Sudhi, the plea was filed against, what he called, the unreasonable and arbitrary announcement for compensation without identifying the real victims of riots.

He argued that the compensation shall not be given to the alleged perpetrators of the riots and that they must not be treated as victims.

'There are FIRs registered against some of these persons. Public money can't be used to pay compensation to such persons', he argued.

Further, the Petitioner had also sought the following directions from the court:

1. A direction for striking down order of compensation to all victims riot as being unreasonable and arbitrary.
2. Direction to the Delhi Government for laying down comprehensive and exhaustive guidelines with respect to width, length of space of government advertisement of notifying the announcement to prevent the misuse of public money which can be published like other government notifications.
3. Direct to re-notify the fresh announcement/notification by incorporating mandatory conditions of identification of the real victims of riots before releasing the compensation amount.
4. Direction for regulation of ex-gratia compensation amount which should be proportionate to the loss of life and social standing to deceased.
5. Direction to restore/rehabilitate/re-construction of damaged educational institutions and religious places irrespective of the communities in time bound manner, so that forthcoming academic session may not be hampered on account of recent unfortunate incidents of Delhi.

While rejecting the plea, the court highlighted that accessing the role played by the victim in the alleged incident before paying the compensation would render the entire process of granting compensation impossible to carry out.