Victims Under The Criminal Justice System: India, UK, US, Russia, France
- IJLLR Journal
- Dec 25, 2025
- 1 min read
G.R. Radhika, The Tamilnadu Dr. Ambedkar Law University School of Excellence in Law
ABSTRACT
The status, rights, and difficulties faced by victims in the criminal justice systems of India, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Russia are compared in this article. It charts the development of victimisation from a marginal, witness-centric role to a more rights-based, participatory view influenced by international norms, victimology, and constitutional principles. The study demonstrates how various legal traditions adversarial, inquisitorial, and hybrid systems conceptualize victim participation, protection, compensation, and access to justice through an examination of statutory provisions, judicial interpretations, and institutional procedures. While the United States and Russia place a strong focus on enforceable statutory rights, the United Kingdom pursues a service-oriented model through its Victims' Code, while France offers a strong civil-party structure for victim participation and compensation. Despite constitutional acknowledgement of victims' rights, India's system is nonetheless beset by procedural restrictions, delays, and implementation inadequacies. The article identifies common challenges across jurisdictions, including secondary victimisation, delays, weak enforcement of rights, and barriers to compensation. It concludes by advocating a hybrid victim-centric framework that integrates enforceable legal rights, participatory mechanisms, effective compensation, and institutional support services, thereby promoting a more balanced and humane criminal justice process.
Keywords: Victims of crime, criminal justice system, victim rights, comparative criminal law, victimology, compensation and restitution, victim participation.
