IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE THOTTATHIL B.RADHAKRISHNAN & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE S.S.SATHEESACHANDRAN THURSDAY, THE 20TH MAY 2010 / 30TH VAISAKHA 1932 WP(C).No. 12128 of 2010(S) -------------------------- OA.633/2008 of CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL,ERNAKULAM BENCH .................... PETITIONER(S): --------------- 1. P0URNAMI.K.PREETHI(MINOR AGED 17) PARUTHIVILAI,CHENTHARAI,KEEZHKULAM.P.O, KANYAKUMARI DISTRICT,TAMILNADU. 2. SHERATH.K.GUHAN(MINOR AGED 15) PARUTHIVILAI,CHENTHARAI,KEEZHKULAM.P.O, KANYAKUMARI DISTRICT,TAMILNADU. BOTH MINORS REPRESENTED BY THEIR NEXT FRIEND AND GUARDIAN SATHYANESAN RESIDING AT DO. DO. BY ADV. SRI.L.MOHANAN SMT.LIGEY ANTONY RESPONDENT(S): --------------- 1. SOUTHERN RAILWAY,REPRESENTED BY ITS DIVISIONAL MANAGER,DIVISIONAL OFFICE SOUTHERN RAILWAY,THIRUVANATHAPURAM-40. 2. R.SHAKUNTHALA,D/O.RAMASWAMY,OZHIPARA, POTTETI.PO,K.K.DISTRICT,TAMILNADU. ADV. SRI.JAMES KURIAN, SC, RAILWAYS FOR R1 SRI.THOMAS MATHEW NELLIMOOTTIL THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 20/05/2010, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: THOTTATHIL B.RADHAKRISHNAN & S.S.SATHEESACHANDRAN, JJ. --------------------------------------- W.P.(C)No.12128 of 2010 --------------------------------------- Dated this the 20th day of May, 2010 JUDGMENT THOTTATHIL B.RADHAKRISHNAN, J. Notice to the respondents dispensed with, reserving their right to seek re-hearing of this writ petition, if they so desire. 2. A railway employee, one Kumaresan, died on 25.7.2005. The two minor petitioners are his children born to Smt.Sobhana, who pre-deceased Kumaresan. The two minors, represented by their paternal uncle, filed the original application before the Central Administrative Tribunal, seeking a direction to the Railways to release his entire retiral benefits to them. 3. The Railways contended that as per the family composition of the late employee, as recorded in the records in the Railways, though the applicants are shown as the children of Kumaresan through the first wife, one Smt.R.Shakunthala is shown as the second wife. The Railways, accordingly, had released 50% of the retiral benefits to Smt.R.Shakunthala in terms of the Rules. She has also been given compassionate W.P.(C)No.12128 of 2010 :: 2 :: appointment. The Railways say that the applicants are minors and the funds due to them could not be released, because there was no claim by any person on behalf of the minors, with any appointment of a legal guardian. 4. With the aforesaid, we may now notice that no rejoinder was filed by the applicants to the clear statement in the reply of the Railways before the Tribunal that the family composition of the late employee, as recorded in the records of the Railway, showed Smt.R.Shakunthala as the second wife of Kumaresan. 5. When the family composition, as available in the Railways, shows the persons as noted above, the Tribunal acted well within its jurisdiction to have stated that it would not interfere with the matter. It was not within the domain of the Tribunal to decide the nature of succession of the estate of a deceased Government Servant. The validity or otherwise of the marriage of Smt.R.Shakunthala with the deceased is not a matter over, which the Tribunal could have sat over judgment. More importantly, though Smt.R.Shakunthala is impleaded as the 2nd W.P.(C)No.12128 of 2010 :: 3 :: respondent in this writ petition, she was not a party before the Tribunal. Therefore, we are clear in our mind, notwithstanding the fact that the Railways had released 50% of the amount to Smt.R.Shakunthala, had treated her as the wife of Kumaresan, going by the records available with the Railways, nothing stands in the way of the petitioners seeking relief in relation to the entire estate of the deceased, including the retiral benefits, by seeking appropriate reliefs from the competent court. It is clarified that the findings in Ext.P6 order of the Tribunal would not stand in the way of the petitioners seeking such relief. Subject to this observation, this writ petition is dismissed. Sd/- (THOTTATHIL B.RADHAKRISHNAN) JUDGE Sd/- (S.S.SATHEESACHANDRAN) JUDGE sk/ //true copy// P.S. to Judge.