RAMAHARI BEHERA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) AS common questions of law and facts involve in both these appeals, they are being disposed of by this common judgment. These appeals are preferred under Section 23 (1) of the Railway Claims Tribunal Act, 1987 by the claimants against two different awards made by the Railway Claims Tribunals, Bhubaneswar in O.A. No.83 of 1999 dated 25.10.2004 and O.A. No.41 of 2002 dated 15.10.2004.

(2.) THE brief facts of each case are as follows; On Sadakanta Behera, the deceased, while travelling from Howrah to Balasore in Dhauli Express on 4.12.1998, to sudden jerk, he fell down from the train near about Jaleswar station. Thereafter, the injured was shifted to S.C.B. Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack with the help of staff of Jaleswar Railway Station and others and on the next date he succumbed to the injury. The parents of the deceased filed the claim application and they have proved the tickets and other police papers. The railway authorities filed their written statement in usual manner. The claimants also filed two affidavits. The Tribunal after analyzing the materials available before it accepted the proved evidence of claimants that the deceased was a bona fide passenger and died in an untoward incident awarded the statutory compensation of Rs. 4 lakhs with interest @ 6% from the date of the order. In this appeal, the claimants have challenged being aggrieved by the award in respect of payment of interest.

(3.) THE apex Court in the case of N. Parameswaran Pillai v. Union of India reported in 2002 ACJ 841 (SC) while dealing with the judgment of a Division Bench of Kerala High Court upheld the award of the Railway Tribunal and directed that the claimants are entitled the interest from the date of application till the date of payment (pendente lite interest). In the said decision the apex Court has also taken into consideration the case of Rathi Menon v. Union of India reported in AIR 2001 SC 1333. This Court in the case of Prasant Kumar Choudhury v. Union of India reported in AIR 2007 ORI 33 after taking into consideration the decision of the apex Court as well as various High Courts has also allowed the interest on the compensation awarded by the Railway Tribunal from the date of filing of the application.