The Kerala High Court on Wednesday directed the State government to allocate necessary money to the Victim Compensation Fund to enable the Kerala State Legal Services Authority (KELSA) to clear pending claims under the Kerala Victim Compensation Scheme, 2017 without further delay.
Justice Kauser Edappagath observed that the KELSA and the District Legal Services Authorities (DLSAs) will be able to disburse compensation to victims only if necessary funds are allocated to the Victim Compensation Fund by the State government. The KELSA had informed the court that disbursement of compensation to the tune of more than ₹6 crore is pending due to non-allocation of funds by the government.
The court passed the directive while quashing the orders of the KELSA rejecting the request of the Kollam and Alappuzha DLSAs to allocate funds for paying compensation awarded by these to victims in Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act cases. The KELSA had returned the orders holding that without a recommendation from the special courts, the DLSAs cannot award compensation.
