POCSO Act: Delhi High Court Issues Directions For Disbursal Of Compensation To Child Victims By DSLSA

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday issued directions for disbursal of compensation to the child victims of sexual abuse under the POCSO Act by the Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA).

A division bench comprising of Justice Rajiv Shakdher and Justice Amit Bansal inserted a sixth part (Part F) in the existing SOP framed in the backdrop of Delhi Victim Compensation Scheme, 2018, which contained five parts.

As per the judgment, Part F of the SOP states that a child victim of sexual abuse is entitled to three kinds of compensation- interim compensation given directly under the 2018 Scheme, interim compensation awarded by the concerned special court under the POCSO Act and final compensation awarded by the special court under the POCSO Act.

“Thus, the direction and instructions in this part would apply only to disbursal of compensation where the offence committed falls within the ambit of the POCSO Act and compensation is to be given in the circumstances referred to in F-1 (i) to (iii) referred to hereinabove,” the court clarified.

The bench further clarified that in case of conflict between the directions or instructions in the newly inserted Part F and those in other parts of the SOP, the former shall prevail.

The court directed that the child victim would be required to submit only the following documents to the concerned DLSA for disbursal of compensation- Aadhar card and birth certificate which would suffice as a proof of identity, a copy of the passbook issued by the bank to establish the existence of a valid bank account in the name of the minor and an undertaking or indemnity bond in terms of clause B.12 of the SOP.

The bench directed that the child victims who ordinarily reside outside the national capital but were subjected to offences here, the concerned DLSA shall seek the assistance of the local DLSA or any other statutory authority which has sway over the area where the minor is located for conducting verification of documents.

Further directions are as follows:

- After the child victim submits relevant documents, the concerned DLSA shall, with the assistance of the Investigating Officer [IO], endeavour to complete verification of the documents submitted within two (2) weeks commencing from the date of submission of the said documents.

- The Deputy Police Commissioner having jurisdiction over the concerned area will ensure that the timeline indicated above is not crossed.

- To ensure strict adherence to timelines, the Commissioner of Police will issue standing instructions to all field formations.

- Upon completion of verification of documents by the concerned DLSA with the assistance of an I.O., a certificate will be issued detailing the documents that stand verified. Thereafter, in case the child victim is awarded any further compensation, the said certificate shall be taken as valid proof of his/her documents being verified.

- Once verification is complete and a certificate is issued, the concerned DLSA will ensure that no further objections regarding jurisdiction are raised for issuing compensation to the bank account of the child victim.

- The child victim will not be required to undergo a re-verification unless the reliance is placed on new documents not mentioned in the certificate. In case such an eventuality arises, verification of the new document shall be conducted by the concerned DLSA with the assistance of the I.O. at the earliest, at least two (02) weeks from the date of submission of the new document(s).

- The DSLSA, along with the concerned DLSA, shall ensure that disbursal of interim or final compensation takes place within 30 days from the date of issuance of direction by the concerned DLSA for grant of compensation.

Furthermore, apart from Part F, the bench also issued separate directions to DSLSA and Delhi Police. The court directed DSLSA to issue and disseminate a detailed protocol regarding the procedure and safeguards for conducting biometric verification before disbursing compensation to child victims.

“Biometric protocol will, among other things, take into account the following: (i) The biometric data is stored and transmitted only in encrypted form. (ii) The encrypted biometric data is decrypted only on authentication. (iii) The service provider does not obtain access to decrypted biometric data. (iv) The decrypted or digital key is kept separate from the biometric data. (v) The protocol put in place by DSLSA would also provide the leeway to the victim to seek deletion of his/her biometric record after attaining majority in terms of the extant legal regime,” the court directed.

It further said that for the victims who were residing outside Delhi but are subjected to offences here, compensation will be disbursed in their bank account wherever it is located without raising objections with regard to the bank's situs after verification is completed in terms of Part F of the SOP.

The bench directed the Delhi Police to ensure that the IOs verify documents in accordance with the SOP and that the Commissioner of Police will ensure that the responsibilities given to the police department are followed scrupulously.

Furthermore, the court ordered that special courts established under the POCSO Act shall communicate orders to the concerned DLSA as soon as they are passed and the time period must not be later than 03 working days from the date of issuance of the order.

The special courts shall ensure that the victim impact assessment report is filed by the I.O. ordinarily within two weeks, the bench said.

“The Registrar General will ensure that a circular is taken out whereby the addendum to the 2018 SOP is brought to the notice of all concerned, i.e., the special courts, the concerned DLSAs and officers manning the special courts,” the court said.

It directed the DSLSA to issue a circular bringing to the notice of the concerned DLSAs the directions issued in the judgment.

The bench disposed of a PIL filed by Abhishek Yadav, a social worker with more than three years of experience as a support person for survivors under the POCSO Act.

It was his case that he had often accompanied child survivors and their families to various District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) offices to assist them in navigating through the documentation and other procedural hiccups that come in the way of timely receipt of compensation.

Counsel for Petitioner: Ms Mansi Sood, Ms Nimisha Menon and Ms Ragini Nagpal, Advocates

Counsel for Respondents: Dr Amit George, Mr Adhishwar Suri, Ms Ibansara Syiemlieh, Mr Arkaneil Bhaumik, Advocates; Mr Satyakam, ASC, with Mr Pradyut Kashyap, Advocate for GNCTD; Ms Aditi Mohan and Ms Puru Lekhi, Advocates for Delhi High Court

Title: ABHISHEK YADAV v. DELHI STATE LEGAL SERVICES AUTHORITY & ANR.

Click here to read order