HOSENARA BEGUM & ORS. Vs. WBSEDCL & ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) It gives me and perhaps all conscientious persons pain unspeakable to pass an order in a case where the licensee has so flagrantly and with impunity violated the basic principles of natural justice. A statutory body violating the same and justifying the act by filing an affidavit-in-opposition is a matter of serious concern for the present system where citizens have a right to repose their ultimate trust in the system itself.

(2.) The husband of the petitioner No. 1 was an agriculturist and he met with an accidental death on November 4, 2013. When he entered into the paddy field of his father in the district of Burdwan he accidentally stepped into a live electrical wire of 440 volts which was snapped from the overhead installation. The petitioners intimated the same to the authorities. It appears from the record that a spot enquiry was made, an FIR on behalf of the licensee was lodged and the petitioners were directed to file certain documents. They submitted those documents as early as on January 21, 2014. Since they did not hear anything from the respondents on the fate of their application for compensation, they moved a writ petition before this Court being W.P. 6488(W) of 2014.

(3.) The said writ petition was disposed of by a learned Single Judge of this Court by an order dated January 20, 2015 directing the respondent No. 2 to that writ petition, i.e. the Assistant Engineer and Station Manager, Bhatar Customer Care Centre, to take a decision on the documents as sought for by the letter dated November 27, 2013 and to dispose of the petitioners' application by passing a reasoned order. That direction was complied with by the respondent No. 2, who figures the same respondent's number in this writ petition as well, by an order dated February 7, 2015 by rejecting the petitioners' case for grant of solatium/compensation upon a finding that the deceased husband of the petitioner No. 1 had met with an accident due to unauthorized use of electricity by the disconnected consumer of a submersible pump. The said order is practically under challenge in the present writ petition.