RANI DEVI Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is claimants' appeal challenging the award dated 11.11.2010 of the Railway Claims Tribunal, Chandigarh for enhancement of compensation on the ground that the same is inadequate.

(2.) As per the pleadings, one Kesar Dass died in an untoward incident which occurred on 22.7.2008, while he was travelling by train. The deceased was labourer by profession and a resident of Barwala, used to go to Hisar and Adampur for one or two weeks in search of work and after earning his livelihood, used to come back to his home at Barwala. On the fateful date i.e. on 22.7.2008, he purchased a journey ticket from Adampur to Hisar. Thereafter, he reached at Hisar by train and after purchasing another ticket from Hisar to Barwala, boarded train No. 9781-UP. When the train reached near Barwala railway station, he accidentally fell down from the train and got seriously injured. On 22.7.2008, the Pointsman gave information to the Station Master, Railway Station Barwala, who issued memo to the GRP, Hisar at 7.00 hrs. After receiving the memo, the GRP reached at the spot and got him admitted in Anant Ram Janta Hospital, but the deceased succumbed to his injuries. In his personal search, the GRP recovered two railway tickets, one from Adampur to Hisar and another from Hisar to Barwala.

(3.) The railway-authority contested the claim application submitting that no incident took place as alleged and no compensation was payable. The incident is not covered under the ambit of "untoward incident" as defined in Section 123 (c) of the Railways Act (for short 'the Act') as the deceased suffered injuries on account of his own negligence and criminal act by standing at the gate of the moving train or trying to get down from the moving train when it was reaching the platform of his destination station and thus, the railway administration is not liable to pay any compensation in terms of proviso to Section 124-A of the Act.