VIJAYA RAMESH BARVE Vs. BANK OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Appeal has been preferred by the wife of the deceased Ramesh Dattatraya Barve who was employed as a Machine Operator on the Machine Accounting System in the respondent-Bank. The deceased Ramesh joined service on 16th June, 1970. He died on 7th September, 1988. According to the applicants, i.e. the appellants herein, the deceased was posted in the Reconciliation Department and he died as a result of a heart attack as a consequence of the stressful work performed by him. The appellants claimed an amount of Rs. 2,65,956.83 as compensation from the respondent-Bank. Since the amount was not paid, the appellants preferred an application under the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923, (for short the said Act), being Application W.C. No. 164 of 1990.

(2.) The respondent-Bank opposed the claim by contending that it was not covered by the said Act. It was also contended that the employee was not a workman governed by the said Act and therefore the claim was not maintainable. The respondent-Bank contended that since the claim was made for a workman who was working in the clerical capacity, the application was not maintainable.

(3.) The Commissioner framed a preliminary issue regarding the maintainability of the application and the jurisdiction of the Commissioner to decide the claim.