Pay Rs 3 lakh to rape victim: SC to Bihar govt

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Bihar government to pay Rs 3 lakh to a rape victim whose 27-week foetus could not be aborted due to the contrary opinion given by a panel of doctors from AIIMS, Delhi.

A bench presided over by Justice Dipak Misra ordered the state government to pay the money to the woman within four weeks. The court also agreed to consider if the destitute woman, also suffering from intellectual disability, was entitled to some other compensation as her counsel, Vrinda Grover, contended that the state government neglected the case.

Vrinda did not press with the plea for termination of the woman’s pregnancy in view of the report given by the panel of doctors, which saw danger to her life if the process was undertaken.

The counsel claimed that the state government opposed the woman’s plea for termination of pregnancy before the Patna High Court. The woman was just 17 weeks pregnant at that time, the counsel added.

“The petitioner is eligible to get compensation under the Victims Compensation Scheme under Section 357 of the Criminal Procedure Code as she is a victim of rape,” the bench said.

The woman was examined at the AIIMS after the Central government arranged for her travel on a direction from the apex court.

In its order on Tuesday, the apex court also directed the Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna, to ensure that the woman got adequate facilities as indicated in the treatment graph by the AIIMS doctors’ panel.

The court put the matter for further consideration on August 9.