What are Medical Facilities and Shelter Homes?

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[Trigger Warning: The following content contains information on domestic violence which some readers may find disturbing.]

Medical Facilities

If you have been subjected to domestic violence, it is your right to receive medical assistance. You can approach the Protection Officer of your district or any service provider working within the ambit of women’s rights, and they will help you, as well as any child, obtain medical assistance. The medical report will be forwarded to the relevant police station and Court.

Role of a Medical Facility:

Providing medical assistance to a victim of domestic violence. No medical facility can deny service to such a person.
File a DIR and forward it to the relevant Protection Officer, if one has not been filed already.
Supply the victim with a free copy of the medical report.

Shelter Home

Shelter homes are homes set up by the State Government to provide a safe space for women to stay in. Any woman who has suffered from any kind of violence including rape, sexual crimes, domestic violence, etc. can stay in a shelter home(( Section 6, The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005.)). If you are unable to go back to your house because the harasser(s) who harmed you is/are still living there, then the Protection Officer or service provider may ask you to go to a shelter home. If you want to find a shelter home, you can approach a Protection Officer who would maintain records of the shelter home in his or her district(( Section 11(3) and 11(4), The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005.)).

Even if you have not filed a DIR, with the help of a Protection Officer, you can ask for accommodation in a Government-run shelter home, and the shelter home cannot refuse shelter to you merely because you have not lodged a DIR. If you desire, the shelter home will not disclose your identity to the harasser(( Section 16(1),(2),(3), The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005.)).

Some states provide handbooks for ASHA workers where you can find more information on forms on violence, where it can happen and how to file a complaint to seek protection against domestic violence. For example, see this handbook published for ASHA in Chattisgarh, Delhi, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

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Related Resources

Who can seek Protection against Domestic Violence?

Any woman can file a complaint and seek protection against domestic violence under the law, for herself and her child/children. The religion of the woman does not matter.

What is the Time Limit to Complain against Domestic Violence?

There is no specific time limit for filing a complaint against domestic violence, but you must be able to prove that you were in a domestic relationship with the harasser at the time the violence took place.

How can you get Immediate Protection for Domestic Violence?

To seek immediate protection from domestic violence, you should file an application with the Court with the help of a Protection Officer or a lawyer.

What is Counseling under Domestic Violence law?

Counseling refers to the provision of professional guidance by a counselor, who will help you and your harasser settle the matter of the domestic violence you have faced, furnish a guarantee that violence will not repeat, and come up with the best possible solution to the problem of domestic violence.

What is domestic violence?

Domestic violence refers to violent or abusive behavior in a household that causes harm and may put the health and safety of a woman or any child under her custody in danger.

What is a Shared Household ?

You live in a shared household with your harasser if you lived with the harasser, have a domestic relationship with the harasser and have/do not have a legal share in the house.