GREEN ROADWAYS REGD Vs. NIRMAL SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal against the order of the Commissioner, Workmen's Compensation, Delhi, dated 1.4.1985. The appellants M/s. Green Roadways are a firm carrying on business of goods transportation. In May 1980, the Election Commissioner and the Union of India needed trucks for transportation of Presiding Officers, Polling Officers and other staff, furniture, ballot boxes etc. to different polling stations. They engaged M/s. Green Roadways, the appellants, for this purpose. M/s. Green Roadways hired truck No. RST 7719 from the owner Moti Ram. Ninnal Singh claimant is a driver. He was in the employment of M/s. Green Road- ways. The said truck No. RST 7719 together with the services of driver Ninnal Singh were entrusted to the Election Commissioner and the Government of India under the said contract. The said truck left the office of the Election Commissioner, Delhi, for Udaipur in 23.5.1980 for the purpose of elections under the directions and order of the Union India and the Election Commissioner. Mr. Shanti Lal Jain, Presiding Officer of Polling Station No. 226, his staff, furniture and ballot boxes were being carried to Polling Station in the said truck. Mr. Kanti Desai, Deputy Magistrate, had also accompanied them in the said truck. It is stated by the claimants that the area through which the truck was passing was hilly and the road was narrow and uneven on the side of Gongunda in District Udaipur. Though the truck was being driven with great care and caution the road was so bad and tricky that the truck went out of control and dashed against stony hill and the claimant workman received severe injuries including fracture of left knee bone. He was treated at the Military Base Hospital, New Delhi.

(2.) The claimant workman filed a claim petition with the Workmen's Compensation Commissioner at Delhi. Since the accident had taken place in Rajasthan, the Workmen's Compensation Commissioner, Delhi, transferred the petition to Workmen's Compensation Commissioner at Udaipur. Without any sanction, the Commissioner at Delhi recalled the said reference to himself and that is why the matter was heard arid finally disposed of by the Commissioner at Delhi. No notice of transfer or retransfer of the references was given to any of the respondents in the claim petition, including the present appellant. On 16.2.1983 the Commissioner at Delhi issued notice of the lodgment of claim by the claimant workman alongwith the application for condonation of delay. There was a delay in filing the claim petition by six months. The petition should have been filed on 23.5.1982 but the same was actually filed on 23.11.1982. During the pendency of the said reference Moti Ram, owner of the truck, died. His representatives were not brought on record. The Union of India and the Election Commissioner were served but they preferred not to appear and, therefore, they were proceeded ex parte. On 23.8.1984 the Commissioner listed the matter for recording the evidence on the application for condonation of delay for 13.9.1984. No evidence was recorded on that date but the matter was further adjourned to 21.1.1985. On that date evidence of the workman was recorded. In the normal course after recording the statement on the application for condonation of delay and hearing the arguments the Commissioner should have pronounced his order on the said application and thereafter proceeded with the case on merits. This procedure was not followed and the Commissioner without fixing up any dates for further proceedings pronounced the final order on 1.4.1985 disposing of the claim petition on merits.

(3.) The appellants have pointed out several infirmities in the impugned order. Perhaps one way to deal with the matter is to remand it to the Commissioner for fresh decision but as the accident had taken place in 1980 and the workman has not received any amount towards the compensation for the last seven years, I would not therefore like to further delay the matter and cause further hardship to the workman.