Madhya Pradesh Crime Victim Compensation Scheme, 2015

What is the Madhya Pradesh Crime Victim Compensation Scheme?

Madhya Pradesh Crime Victim Compensation Scheme, 2015 is a state scheme notified by the Home Department, Government of Madhya Pradesh by notification number 140 dated 31 March 2015, under section 357A of the Code of Criminal Procedure. It creates a fund and a decision-making machinery to compensate people who have suffered loss or injury as a result of a crime and who need rehabilitation. The Hindi name is अपराध पीड़ित प्रतिकर योजना, 2015.

The single most important thing to understand about the scheme is that compensation does not depend on the criminal case succeeding. Section 357A was written precisely because a victim's need for money, surgery or a livelihood does not pause while a trial runs for years. Madhya Pradesh's scheme therefore allows an award where the accused was never identified, where the accused was acquitted, and while the trial is still pending.

Day-to-day operation sits with the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) in each district, under the Madhya Pradesh State Legal Services Authority (MPSLSA). A district-level committee monitors the scheme, chaired ex officio by the District and Sessions Judge, with the District Magistrate, the Superintendent of Police and the Secretary of the DLSA as ex officio members.

How much compensation is payable?

The scheme carries a schedule of upper limits by category of loss. The reported ceilings include:

Two qualifications matter more than the table itself.

First, every figure is a maximum, not an entitlement. The DLSA assesses the actual loss, the medical evidence, the age and earning capacity of the victim and the dependency of the family, then fixes an amount within the ceiling.

Second, income affects the award. Where the annual income of the victim's family exceeds Rs 5,00,000, the compensation payable is reduced to 50 per cent of the scheduled amount.

Interim relief is a separate and often more urgent route. The DLSA is required to make provision for immediate relief, especially medical assistance, without waiting for the full inquiry to conclude. A family facing surgery costs in the first week after an acid attack should ask for interim compensation in writing on day one rather than waiting for the final award.

Who is eligible under the scheme?

You can claim if:

• You are a victim of a crime committed in Madhya Pradesh that caused loss or injury and you need rehabilitation.
• You are a dependant; spouse, parent or dependent child: of a victim who died as a result of the crime, and you hold a dependency certificate from the competent authority.
• You are a victim of sexual assault, gang rape, acid attack, grievous hurt, human trafficking or another offence covered by the schedule.
• An FIR or criminal complaint exists in respect of the incident.

You are not eligible, or your claim will be reduced, if:

• The offence was not committed in Madhya Pradesh. The claim belongs to the state where the crime occurred, and every state and union territory has its own scheme under section 357A.
• You have already received adequate compensation for the same incident from another source, a court order, an insurance payout, or another government scheme. The DLSA sets off what has already been received so the same loss is not paid twice.
• No FIR or complaint exists and there is no police or court record of the incident at all.
• Your family's annual income exceeds Rs 5,00,000, in which case you remain eligible but the amount is halved.

What documents are required?

How to apply for crime victim compensation in Madhya Pradesh

1. Get the FIR registered at the police station of the area where the incident occurred, and keep a copy. If the police will not register it, a written complaint to the Superintendent of Police or a complaint before the magistrate under section 156(3) creates the record you need.
2. Obtain the medical papers — the casualty register entry, discharge summary, injury certificate, and for a permanent disability, the certificate of the district medical board.
3. Apply in writing to the Secretary, District Legal Services Authority at the district court complex. The DLSA gives the application format free of charge and will help you fill it. There is no court fee.
4. Attach the document set and ask, in the same application, for interim relief if medical treatment is ongoing. State the amount you need immediately and why.
5. Take a dated acknowledgement with a case number from the DLSA office.
6. Attend the inquiry. The DLSA verifies the claim with the police and the hospital and is expected to complete the inquiry within about 60 days.
7. Receive the award. The sanctioned amount is transferred to the claimant's bank account. Where the victim is a minor, the authority commonly places part of the award in a fixed deposit released on majority.

A court can also refer a case to the DLSA on its own. If the trial court hearing your case recommends compensation, the DLSA proceeds without a separate application from you, but filing your own application is safer than waiting for a referral that may never come.

How to check the status of a compensation claim

Status is tracked at the District Legal Services Authority office in the district court complex. Quote the case number on your acknowledgement and ask whether the file is at police verification, at medical verification, listed before the authority, or awarded. The NALSA legal aid helpline 15100 connects a caller to the legal services authority network and is the fastest way to find the right DLSA if you are not in your home district. Child victims and their families can also use Childline 1098.

How to appeal

• First appeal: to the Madhya Pradesh State Legal Services Authority within 90 days of the district authority's decision.
• Further representation: to the Home Department, Government of Madhya Pradesh.
• CM Helpline 181 can be used to complain about administrative delay, though it is not a substitute for the statutory appeal.

Appeal grounds that actually work are specific: a scheduled category applied wrongly, medical evidence of disability percentage not considered, a dependency certificate ignored, or the income reduction applied when the family's income is in fact below Rs 5,00,000.

Why claims get rejected or reduced

• Claim filed after 180 days without an explanation for the delay.
• No FIR, so the incident has no official record the authority can verify.
• Disability percentage not certified by the medical board, leaving the DLSA with no basis to place the claim in a schedule category.
• Dependency not proved where a relative other than the spouse claims after a death.
• Compensation already received for the same incident from a court order or another scheme, leading to a set-off.
• Bank account not Aadhaar-seeded, which holds up the transfer after the award is already passed.

Where to get help

• District Legal Services Authority at your district court, free assistance, free panel lawyer, free application format
• Madhya Pradesh State Legal Services Authority: mpslsa.gov.in
• NALSA legal aid helpline: 15100
• Childline: 1098, for child victims
• CM Helpline: 181

The whole process is free. A victim being asked for money by anyone to "get the compensation sanctioned" should say so directly to the DLSA Secretary, who is a judicial officer.