DIPALI TRIPURA Vs. STATE OF TRIPURA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appeal arises out of the judgment of dismissal dtd. 1/11/2022 passed by the learned Civil Judge, Sr. Division, Court No.1, West Tripura, Agartala in case No. Money Suit 10 of 2019 and related decree thereof, whereby the claim of the plaintiffs (hereinafter referred to as the appellants) for Rs.15,00,000.00 was rejected.

(2.) The plaintiffs state that the deceased Ranjit Kumar Tripura along with Parendra Aslong, Hadajoy Aslong and others, were playing football in the playground of Padmarai Karbari Para J.B School on 8/4/2017 at about 5 pm. When Hadajoy Aslong was running with the football, suddenly he fell into the abandoned ring well, situated inside the said school compound and did not come out therefrom. To save Hadajoy Aslong, Parendra Aslong thereafter got down into the well and he also did not come out therefrom and then the deceased, Ranjit Kumar Tripura went inside the well to rescue his two friends and he also did not come out. Ultimately, Fire Service authority was informed by the locals and they rescued the corpse of all these three persons from the said well and all of them died due to suffocation by methyl gas emitting from said well. According to the plaintiffs, the said ring well was under the control and management of the school authority or rather the defendants and they left the well uncared condition without any fencing or protection where for the said incident occurred. It is further stated that at the time of death, Ranjit Kumar Tripura was 22 years old, earning Rs.7,500.00 per month being a day labour and also by rearing cows, pigs etc. The plaintiffs sent notice dtd. 27/11/2017 through her Advocate to the defendants but the same fetched no positive response from them and thereafter, the suit was filed.

(3.) All the defendants categorically denied their responsibility regarding the said incident vis-a-vis the responsibility to pay any compensation. According to them, the well was not inside the school complex and it did not belong to any of the defendants. Additionally, it was also claimed that there was protective fencing around the said well and no one could go inside the well without climbing that fence. Moreover, the incident occurred after the school hours.