IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT : THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE A.K.BASHEER & THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE P.Q.BARKATH ALI MONDAY, THE 29TH MARCH 2010 / 8TH CHAITHRA 1932 MFA.No. 257 of 2009() ----------------------------- OA.7/2006 of RAILWAY CLAIMS TRIBUNAL, ERNAKULAM .................... APPELLANT(S): (RESPONDENT IN R.C.T.) ----------------------- 1. THE GENERAL MANAGER SOUTHERN RAILWAY ,CHENNAI-3 2. THE GENERAL MANAGER SOUTHERN RAILWAY ,SECUNDERABAD. BY ADV. SRI.M.C.CHERIAN,SR.SC.,RAILWAYS RESPONDENT(S): (APPLICANTS IN R.C.T.) ---------------------- P.K.ESTHAPANOSE S/O.KURIAKOSE, PARANAYIL HOUSE,VADATTUPARA PO KOTHAMANGALAM, ERNAKULAM DISTRICT. ADV. SRI.MARTIN G.THOTTAN THIS MISC. FIRST APPEAL HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 29/03/2010, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: A.K.BASHEER & P.Q.BARKATH ALI, JJ. -------------------------------- M.F.A.No.257 OF 2009 -------------------------------- Dated this the 29th day of March, 2010 J U D G M E N T ~~~~~~~~~~~ Basheer, J. Appellants are General Managers of Southern Railway, Chennai and South Central Railway, Secunderabad. 2. By the impugned judgment, the Tribunal has directed the appellants to pay a sum of Rs.Four lakhs as compensation to the parents of deceased Giby Stephen as provided under Part-I of the Schedule framed under Rule 3 of the Railway Accidents & Untoward Incidents Compensation Amendment Rules, 1997 with 6% interest per annum from the date of registration of the case before the Tribunal till the date of payment. 3. Respondent No.1, the father of the victim, had claimed compensation contending inter alia that his son Giby had succumbed to the injuries sustained by him in a rail accident which occurred while he was travelling by Train No.6360 M.F.A.No.257/2009 2 Patna-Ernakulam Express from Jabalpur to Ernakulam on 08.09.2005. According to respondent No.1/claimant, Giby had boarded the train from Jabalpur station. He was allotted a birth in S8 coach by the Ticket Examiner. When the train reached near Yerrupalem railway station on the next day, Giby accidentally fell down from the train and he succumbed to the injuries sustained by him due to the fall. 4. The specific case of the claimant was that Giby had gone to Jabalpur inorder to complete the admission formalities of his sister in a hospital. PW2, the teacher of the institution, where Giby's sister had completed her course in Nursing, deposed before the court as PW2 that she had infact booked the railway tickets for Giby and his sister along with five other Nursing students, who had also got admission in a hospital at Jabalpur. Respondent No.1, who was examined as PW1 had also stated that his son was sent along with his daughter to Jabalpur for the above purpose. Unfortunately, his son met with this tragedy on his way back. M.F.A.No.257/2009 3 5. The Tribunal accepted the above version given by the claimant. The Tribunal noticed that the evidence of PW2 fully corroborated the version given by PW1. The police records also supported the case of the claimant. Ext.A4, FIR registered by the Railway Police, Khammam, in Crime No.102/2005 under Section 174 of Cr.P.C., clearly revealed that the dead body of Giby was found on the track near Yerrupalem Railway Station. A copy of the final report of the police was produced and marked in the case as Ext.A9. The said report concluded that: “The evidence collected and investigation it is established that the deceased is a resident of Kerala State and proceeding to Kerala from Jabalpur, while on the way the deceased accidentally slipped from train and fell near advance starter signal of Yerrupalem and received multiple fracture injuries and was died. No foul play was suspected in the death of the deceased.” (emphasis supplied) 6. The claim petition was resisted by the appellant primarily on the ground that the claimant had failed to produce either the ticket or reservation coupon to show that deceased M.F.A.No.257/2009 4 Giby was a bonafide passenger in the train in question. The Tribunal, rightly in our view, repelled the above contention. Having carefully perused the materials available on record, we do not find any reason to interfere with the impugned judgment passed by the Tribunal. There is no merit in any of the contentions raised by the appellant. The appeal fails and it is accordingly dismissed. (A.K.BASHEER, JUDGE) (P.Q.BARKATH ALI, JUDGE) ps