This article is written by Kalpana Kumari of 3rd Semester of National University of Study And Research in Law, Ranchi
ABSTRACT:
Monetary relief is the payment given by the defendant to the plaintiff in case any losses occur to the plaintiff due to his own negligence, or with his intention to harm the plaintiff. The monetary reliefs are given in the cases of accident, grievous hurt by acid, death, gang rape, and domestic violence etc. thus, this paper aims to throw the light upon the monetary relief and in which cases the plaintiff can get the same. Relief in terms of monetary value is decided by the Court by analysing the case and the nature of the act.
The article is divided into 3 categories including the introduction of the paper, the main theme of the article and the conclusion to provide a clear picture to the readers about the article and to understand it in a better way.
Keywords – compensation to aggrieved party, Sec 20 of Domestic Violence Act, Section 357A of CrPC.
INTRODUCTION:
Monetary relief is the compensation which the defendant has to pay to aggrieved person or the victim for the losses, damages, costs he/she has suffered and to meet the expenses incurred and to bring the suit and any other form of monetary payment.
It is usually paid when there are monetary damages to the aggrieved party in a suit.
Monetary relief in CrPC:
According to Section 357(1)(b) of CrPC, when the court imposes sentence to a person of which fine is also a part, the Court may order the whole or any part of the fine to be given to the person who suffered loss or injury due to the committed offence of wrongdoer.
Section 357(1)(c) of CrPC says that if the person convicted for the offence of death or abetted the commission of such offence, he is liable to pay the damages incurred by the victim for the loss they’ve suffered.
Section 357(1)(d) of CrPC says that if any person is convicted for the offence of theft, criminal misappropriation, criminal breach of trust, cheating, or dishonestly retained or received, voluntarily engaged in disposing of, stolen property
Section 357(3) of CrPC, when Court imposes sentence to the accused of which fine does not form a part, the Court while passing the judgement may order the accused to give compensation to the victim in the form of money for which the accused has been sentenced.
Section 357-A of CrPC, which talks about Victim compensation Scheme where sub section (1) says that each state government must coordinate with the Central Government for providing funds for the compensation to the aggrieved party or his dependents for the loss suffered.
Sub section (3) of Section 357-A states that if at the end of the trial, the Court is satisfied that the compensation awarded is not enough, or the accused is acquitted or discharged, the Court may recommend for compensation.
In the case of Rao Shiv Bahadur Singh v. State of Vindhiya Pradesh[1] the Supreme Court held that where the statute provides for a thing to be done in a particular moment, then it has to be done in that manner and in no other manner.
In the case of Sumit Kumar Shaw v. the State of Jharkhand[2], 2021, the Jharkhand High Court held that the court is not vested with the power under Section 357A of the Code to quantify the amount of compensation, rather that power is vested with the Legal Services Authority. Thus, the Court can only recommend payment of victim compensation, quantum of which had to be ascertained and determined by the State or District Legal Services Authority.
Monetary Relief in Domestic Violence:
Section 12 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act how relief can be granted while filing application to the Magistrate. Section 12 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005-
(1) A person who feels aggrieved, a Protection Officer, or anyone else acting on their behalf, may submit an application to the Magistrate asking for one or more reliefs under this Act: As long as the Magistrate considers any domestic incident report, he receives from the Protection Officer or the service provider before making a decision on such an application.
(2) Without affecting the person’s ability to file a lawsuit for compensation or damages for injuries brought on by the respondent’s domestic violence acts, the relief sought under subsection (1) may include issuance of an order for payment of damages or compensation. The amount paid or payable in accordance with the order made by the Magistrate under this Act shall be set off against the amount payable under such decree, provided that a decree for any amount as compensation or damages has been passed by any court in favor of the aggrieved person. The decree shall, notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), or any other law currently in effect, be executable for the benefit of the party entitled thereto.
(3) Every application submitted under subsection (1) must follow the approved format and include information as closely as practicable.
(4) The Magistrate sets the first hearing date, which typically cannot be more than three days after the court receives the application.
(5) The Magistrate will make every effort to decide on every application submitted in accordance with subsection (1) within sixty days of the date of the first hearing.
In Kamatchi v. Lakshmi Narayanan[3], 2022, Supreme Court held that limitation period under section 468 of CrPC is not applicable to Application under Section 12 of Domestic violence Act.
The provision of the monetary relief is also described in Section 20 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005.
(1) The Magistrate may order the respondent to pay monetary relief in order to cover the costs and losses incurred by the aggrieved person and any children of the aggrieved person as a result of the domestic violence. This relief may include, but is not limited to:
(a) the loss of earnings;
(b) the cost of medical care;
(c) the loss due to the destruction, damage, or removal of any property having the control of aggrieved party.
(d) the aggrieved person’s support as well as, if applicable, her children’s maintenance, including but not limited to an order of maintenance under section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), or any other currently in effect statute.
(2) The monetary remedy provided under this section must be sufficient, fair, and reasonable and must be in line with the injured person’s customary level of living.
(3) In accordance with the nature and circumstances of the case, the Magistrate may award a suitable lump sum payment or monthly maintenance payments.
(4) The Magistrate shall transmit a copy of the order for financial relief issued under sub section (1) to the parties to the application and the station commander of the police department under the respondent’s local jurisdiction.
(5) Within the time frame stated in the order issued pursuant to subsection (1), the respondent shall pay the monetary relief granted to the harmed party.
(6) The Magistrate may order the respondent’s employer or a debtor to directly pay the aggrieved party or to deposit with the court a portion of the wages or salaries or debt due to or accrued to the respondent’s credit; this amount may be adjusted towards the monetary relief payable by the respondent if the respondent fails to make payment in accordance with the order under sub section (1)[4].
In Shome Nikhil Danani v. Tanya Banon Danani[5], the Delhi High Court held that monetary relief stipulated under section 20 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act is different from maintenance which in addition to an order of maintenance under section 125 of CrPC.
In Mahin Kutty v. Anshida[6], the Kerala High Court held that The Magistrate, while exercising the powers under the Act, is actually not deciding any dispute in like manner as involved in adversarial system, but only taking measures to protect the aggrieved person/women. The monetary reliefs mentioned under Section 20 is more in the nature of restoration of what have been deprived to the women. That means, as a result of domestic violence, if women is deprived, the Magistrate is competent to grant such reliefs as referable under Section 20 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act.
CONCLUSION:
Monetary relief is given to the aggrieved party by the defendant for his wrongdoing or his intention to harm the plaintiff. It is given in cases like accident, acid attack, gang rape, domestic violence etc. Victim Compensation Scheme is also included in the CrPC to provide the compensation to the victims for their treatment and for the losses. In CrPC, monetary relief is given in Sections 357(1)(b), 357(1)(c), 357(1)(d), 357(3) and 357A. Whereas, in the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, monetary relief is given under Section 20 after it is on prima facie that domestic violence has taken place but relief is being talked about in Section 12 of the same act.
[1] Rao Shiv Bahadur Singh v. State of Vindhiya Pradesh, 1954 SCR 1098
[2] Sumit Kumar Shaw v. the State of Jharkhand, Cr. M. P. No. 2194 of 2020 (Jharkhand High Court, 11th February 2021)
[3] Kamatchi v. Lakshmi Narayanan, CriminalAppeal No. 627 of 2022, (Supreme Court pf India, 13th April 2022)
[4] Section 20 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005.
[5] Shome Nikhil Danani v. Tanya Banon Danani, Crl. Rev. Pet. 994/2018(Delhi High Court, 11th April 2019)
[6] Mahin Kutty v. Anshida, Mat. Appeal No. 739 of 2014(Kerala High Court, 9th April 2021)
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