UNION OF INDIA Vs. SHAMSUDDIN WAIZUDDIN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a second appeal by the Union of India arising out of a suit for compensation for loss of consignment. The facts are these : A consignment of two cases of Agarbatti was booked by the Modern Indian Trading Company at a station called Jaswantpur on the Mysore Railway for despatch to the plaintiff firm which was the consignee deliverable at Patna Junction station which is on the Eastern Railway (formerly East Indian Railway). The consignment was not delivered to the plaintiff. After certain correspondence the plaintiff instituted the present suit for recovery of Rs. 651-8-0 on account of loss of the goods on the allegations that in spite of the protracted correspondence and also service of notice under Section 77 of the Indian Railways Act and Section 80 of the Code of Civil Procedure, their claim remained unsatisfied.

(2.) The consignment had to pass through several railways, viz., the Mysore Railway, the Southern Railway, B.N. Railway and the East Indian Railway. But the plaintiff sued only the East Indian Railway through the Union of India. The other Railways were not impleaded as defendants.

(3.) The Union of India representing the East Indian Railway denied liability in toto for the loss and also pleaded non-maintainability of the suit by reason of non-compliance with the provisions of Section 77 of the Indian Railways Act and Section 80 of the Code of Civil Procedure.