Another day. Another attack.

On the gruesome morning of 14th December, a young girl was brutally attacked with acid on her face. She was reminded she has no right to her identity. The news ran her incident for a week or two. Now, her story has faded, like every acid survivor.

I, Shaheen Malik, am an acid attack survivor too. It pains me to know that despite being one of the cruelest forms of violence, acid attacks are not treated with the gravity they must be. We carry the scars with us every day, but justice still evades us.

Can we stop acid attacks? How?

In Laxmi v Union of India, the Supreme Court stated that acid sale would be regulated. Establishments selling acid require a license and must be registered under The Poisons Act, 1919. Shops also need to maintain a register of their stock and individual sales of the acid. No sale must take place without buyer’s ID proof and valid reason for buying acid.

However, the reality is vastly different. Acid is sold openly in stores, online and offline, on the roads with loud calls.

For this reason, in 2020, I filed a PIL demanding a complete ban on sale of acid. The PIL stands pending in Delhi High Court where I have contended that acid is easily available for purchase over the counter in retail stores of Delhi.

When access to acid is easy, acid attacks are easy. Buying acid is neither expensive nor complicated. Regulation, was the first step, complete ban is the next. The only all abiding way to keep ourselves safe from acid attack is to BAN RETAIL SALE OF ACID. Must we wait for another 100 or 1000 victims of this brutal and horrendous crime? What is stopping us?

Sign our petition to fight with us. No sale online or over the counter. We start with New Delhi then target the whole country. Sign my petition to stand against Acid Attacks.

#BanAcidSale #StopAcidAttacks