ADDRESSING THE PLIGHT OF ACID ATTACK SURVIVORS IN INDIA: A SOCIO- LEGAL PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

Over the last decade or so, acid attacks have come to be recognised as one of the more disturbing crimes against the person in India, with hundreds of women—and a smaller number of men—bearing the brunt of this form of brutality. Variously described as “acid throwing” or vitriolage, the offence is essentially the deliberate use of a corrosive substance to maim, scar or disfigure another human being. What it leaves behind is rarely confined to the wounds themselves: survivors are forced to live with permanent scarring, in many cases lifelong disability, and a layered burden of physical and psychological damage that follows them well into the future. Domestic abuse, jilted egos and personal rivalries continue to make up the bulk of the precipitating causes in the Indian context. Reports indicate that nearly 78% of these incidents arise from intensely personal triggers—spurned romantic advances, refused marriage proposals, or strained domestic relationships. The victims, alarmingly, are most often young women between the ages of 11 and 30, and the upward trend in such cases shows little sign of abating. The fact that concentrated acid can be purchased for a pittance in ordinary kirana shops, hardware stores, and supermarkets—in towns and villages alike—turns this everyday commodity into a chillingly accessible weapon, even though unregulated sale and possession have been brought within the ambit of non-bailable offences. Against this backdrop, the present paper undertakes a critical assessment of the lived realities of acid attack survivors in India and interrogates how far the existing statutory and policy framework actually delivers on its promises.