Arun Kumar Arya, a Presiding Officer of a Motor Accident Claims Tribunal reportedly awarded compensation of 60,000 INR to a 23-year-old woman who was involved in a motor accident. There was no fracture but the accident left a scar on her left foot.

The argument was that a scar can harm a woman’s marriage prospects, and the insurance company, United India Insurance, was therefore directed to pay the victim to enable her to get plastic surgery done to remove the scar.

While it would be impossible to argue that the victims of accidents should not be compensated, the logic in this case seems less than palatable.

The Motor Vehicles Act contains a provisions which speak of the quantum of compensation which should be paid to victims of accidents taking a variety of factors including the age of the victim and the severity of the injury into consideration. The amounts of money are not especially high and if one were to compare them with the 60,000 INR directed to be paid to enable a victim to undergo a cosmetic procedure, the only conclusion one can draw is that a scar such as this is considered a serious injury.

The Tribunal may have been absolutely correct in its assessment of the scar and its effects. And if the Tribunal was correct, it hardly reflects well on Indian society. What the case comes across as
conveying is that women are judged by society not so much by what they’re like as individuals but by how flawless their bodies are. That a scar which presumably isn’t even noticeable at first glance is
capable of diminishing a woman’s worth.