Burnt Faces, Sensational Screens: Media Framing, Public Outrage, And Sentencing In Indian Acid-Attack Jurisprudence
- IJLLR Journal
- 3 days ago
- 1 min read
Jasmin Ahluwalia, Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law
ABSTRACT
The law is said to be applied equally for everyone, yet media narratives stringently regulate the response the judiciary as well as the public have to cases of a similar nature. Despite the carefully laid down statutes like the Indian Penal Code, sections 326A-326B, and strict Supreme Court regulations on acid attacks, the conviction rates relating to these laws remain statistically low and are tainted by the response the populace has on the particular victim story. As media narratives oscillate between painting the survivors as either “sensational victims” or “inspirational retaliators”, such attention is dished out very sparsely, leading to most survivors operating from the fringes of the law, in near-invisibility and shadow. These reflect the overall prosecutorial zeal and a highly varied level of sentencing in the few acid attack cases that are brought to light. The depiction of the victims and prosecutors also subtly brings out the bitter reality of acid survivors and how the nature and delays in prosecution vary across the spectrum in such grave cases. The media attention given to cases is more often than not subject to the gender of the victim as well as the gravity of the crime, however the impact this, as well as the distinctions in the application of the law have on the victim and society as large are dire and far-reaching. This research looks into Supreme Court and High Court judgments in acid attack cases, aiming to draw a comparison between the few “popular” cases and the “ordinary” ones.
