Shri Ghuraiya vs Union Of India
2023 Latest Caselaw 2599 MP

                                                          1
                          IN    THE       HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH
                                               AT JABALPUR
                                                    BEFORE
                                      HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE VIVEK AGARWAL
                                           ON THE 13 th OF FEBRUARY, 2023
                                              MISC. APPEAL No. 144 of 2020

                         BETWEEN:-
                         1.    SHRI GHURAIYA S/O LATE SHRI RAKHIYA
                               PRAJAPATI, AGED ABOUT 53 YEARS, R/O GRAM
                               KOYLARI, P.S. BADERA, DISTT. SATNA (M.P.)
                               (MADHYA PRADESH)

                         2.    SHRI NARAYAN PRAJAPATI S/O LATE SHRI
                               RAKHIYA PRAJPATI, AGED ABOUT 48 YEARS,
                               GRAM KOYLARI P.S BADRERA (MADHYA
                               PRADESH)

                                                                                     .....PETITIONERS
                         (BY MS.APARNA SINGH - ADVOCATE)

                         AND
                         1.    UNION OF INDIA THR. GENERAL MANAGER
                               WEST CENTRAL RAILWAY, JABALPUR (M.P.)
                               (MADHYA PRADESH)

                         2.    SMT. DUKHIYA W/O SHRI RAMKUMAR GRAM
                               MULHAT P.S INDWAR (MADHYA PRADESH)

                                                                                   .....RESPONDENTS
                         (RESPONDENT NO.1 BY SHRI SANDEEP KUMAR SHUKLA - ADVOCATE)

                               This appeal coming on for admission this day, th e court passed the
                         following:
                                                           ORDER

This appeal under Section 23 of the Railway Claims Tribunal Act, 1987 is filed by the appellants being aggrieved of judgment dated 4.10.2019 passed by learned Member (Technical), Railway Claims Tribunal, Bhopal Bench, Bhopal in Case No.OA/IIu/BPL/012/2018 dismissing the claim without application of Signature Not Verified Signed by: AMIT JAIN Signing time:

2/14/2023 11:24:07 AM

mind and overlooking the oral testimony of the family members holding that the death of the deceased had not occurred due to accidental fall from the train as defined under Section 123(c)(2) of the Railways Act, 1989 while travelling as a bonafide passenger from Khanna Banjari to Allahabad on 18.5.2017.

Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that it has come on record that the deceased was travelling with them in Itari-Allahabad Passenger which they had boarded at Katni. Since there was lot of crowd in the train and they were going to immerse the ashes of their mother (wife of deceased), therefore, thought they tried to search the deceased on every platform when the train halted but could not find their father at Allahabad. After immersing the ashes,

they returned back and lodged a report about missing person with G.R.P.Police at Maihar, District Satna. However, no copy of such report is available on record. On 31.5.2017, during inquest, it was found that the Police had recovered a body and had buried it. The claimants identified the body of their father through its clothes etc. When the evidence of Narayan Prajapati is seen then it is apparent that it is a case of untoward incident for which the claimants are entitled to compensation.

Learned counsel for the respondent No.1 in his turn opposes the prayer made by learned counsel for the petitioners and submits that the whole conduct of the claimants is unnatural. They never reported any matter at Allahabad when they had not seen their father, who was allegedly travelling with them in the same train to immerse the ashes of their mother. Though it is submitted by learned counsel for the petitioners that there is evidence of co-passenger but no evidence of any co-passenger was produced. He, therefore, prays for dismissal of this appeal.

After hearing learned counsel for the parties and going through the Signature Not Verified Signed by: AMIT JAIN Signing time:

2/14/2023 11:24:07 AM

record, it is evident that the deceased died because of multiple crush injury involving lower limb, gut, liver spleen leading to hemorrhage and neurogenic shock due to heavy run over injury.The postmortem was conducted on 18.5.2017 at 1:00 PM. No report was lodged by the claimants either at Allahabad or at any of the intermediary stations in regard to their father being missing. There is no evidence on record to show that the deceased infact boarded the train. In the impugned judgment, the learned Railway Claims Tribunal has rightly discussed the fact that the conduct of the claimants is unnatural. It is mentioned in the impugned judgment itself that in Paragraph No.3 of the Claim Petition, the age of the deceased is shown as 81 years whereas as per the Police Report Annexure A/1, the age of the deceased is mentioned as 50 years. Similarly, in the Postmortem Report, the age of the deceased is mentioned as 50 years, therefore, there is lot of ambiguity in the identity of the person, who died and that of the father of the claimants. There is a good defence of 30 years in the age. It has come on record and as discussed by the Railway Claims Tribunal that the error of age of 30 years is vast and it cannot be ruled out that there is manipulation in the report.

When the impugned judgment is examined in the light of the aforesaid facts then I find no illegality in the impugned judgment inasmuch as on the touchstone of the conduct of the claimants and also the evidence, which has

come on record, the Railway Claims Tribunal, Bhopal Bench, Bhopal has reached to the right conclusion that it is a case of false implication.

Accordingly, this Miscellaneous Appeal fails and is dismissed. Let record of the Railway Claims Tribunal be sent back.

Signature Not Verified Signed by: AMIT JAIN Signing time:

2/14/2023 11:24:07 AM

(VIVEK AGARWAL) JUDGE amit

Signature Not Verified Signed by: AMIT JAIN Signing time:

2/14/2023 11:24:07 AM