SHANTI KUNWAR Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The claimant-appellant has preferred this appeal against the judgment/order dated 1.6.2012 passed by the Railway Claims Tribunal, Patna Bench, Patna in O.A./T.A. No. 167/2002 by which the claim application has been dismissed. The claim application has been filed by Smt. Shanti Kunwar, wife of the deceased Sriniwash Chaudhary in the tribunal under Section 125 of the Railways Act, 1989 read with Section 16 of R.C.T. Act, 1987 claiming compensation of Rs. 4 lakhs for the death of her husband in an untoward incident on 7.9.2006.

(2.) The case of the appellant-claimant, in brief, is that on 6.9.1999 her husband Sriniwash Chaudhary (deceased) after purchasing a II class Railway ticket No. 28285 from Sasaram to Ludhiana Junction boarded Sialdah-Jammu Tawi (3151 UP) Express train at Sasaram Railway Station. During the journey, he accidentally fell down from the said train at Bira Pahi near Varanasi due to jostling of passengers, sustained grievous injury and succumbed to his injury while taking him to the hospital. It has been claimed that the appellant alongwith other dependents of the deceased is entitled to receive compensation from the railway for the death of her husband in an untoward incident.

(3.) The respondent Railway filed written statement pleading that the claim application is not maintainable in law as well as in facts. As per the respondent, the deceased did not accidentally fall from the train and therefore, it was not a case of untoward incident as defined in the Railways Act.