AJIT KUMAR SINGH Vs. BALMIKI CHOUBEY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BEING aggrieved by the ex parte order dated 28.10.2003 passed by the District Consumer Forum, Garhwa in Complaint Case No. 26/2002, this appeal has been preferred, whereby the State has been held liable to pay a sum of Rs. 1,00,000/ - as compensation to the minor children of deceased Smt. Kusum Devi although the State has not been made a party by the complainant.

(2.) IN this appeal, a limitation petition has been filed on 3. 2.2004 for condoning the delay. According to the office report, the limitation ex -pired on 27.11.2003 whereas the instant appeal was filed on 3.2.2004. Mr. Jaiswal, learned Counsel appearing on behalf of the appellant submitted that since the order was passed ex parte, the appellant was not aware of the order. Admittedly, pursuant to the notice by the District Forum, the appellants appeared and filed the show cause on 24.1.2003 and since then they remained absent throughout the proceedings. Ultimately ex parte order was passed on 28.10.2003. Mr. Jaiswal further submitted that the order was communicated to the Civil Surgeon on 17.4.2003 and from the letter of the Civil Surgeon the appellant came to know about the order. We heard the learned Counsel for the opposite party/appellant and the complainant/respondent in person and perused the limitation petition. Admittedly, the order was passed on 28.10.2003. The appellants, no doubt, appeared and filed their show cause in the Court below as far back as on 24.1.2003 and remained absent for the reasons best known to them. However, in the facts and circumstances of the case, the delay in filing the appeal was condoned subject to the condition that the appellant would pay a sum of Rs. 1,000 by way of cost to the complainant, who was appearing in person, within a week.

(3.) Briefly stated, the facts of the case are that the compainants/respondents daughter Smt. Kusum Devi used to be tortured and assaulted by her husband, father -in -law, mother -in -law and sister -in -law for which she made a complaint to the Garhwa Police Station. On her complaint, Police registered Sanha being SDE No. 365 dated14.5.2000 and sent her to the Sadar Hospital, Garhwa for treatment of her injury. It was alleged that under an influence of her husband and her father -in -law the appellant No. 1, Dr. Ajit Kumar Singh did not submit her injury report to the Garhwa Police Station, subsequently, the same accused persons whose names are mentioned in the Sanha dated 14.5.2000, killed her on 6.9.2002 i.e., more than two years after the earlier incident. In the post -mortem, in which appellant No. 1 was also a participant mentioned the reasons for her death as œdue to poisoning . The complainant/respondent alleged that in collusion with the accused person, the appellant submitted a false post -mortem report and claimed that due to non -submission of the injury report, the accused person ultimately murdered Kusum Devi on 6.9.2002. As a result, the Complaint Case No. 26/2002 was lodged in the Forum below by the complainant/respondent. After receiving the notice from the Court below, the opposite parties/appellants sought advice from the Civil Surgeon, Garhwa through letter dated 3.4.2003 who vide his Letter No. 472/17.4.2003 requested the Public Prosecutor, Garhwa to take all necessary action on behalf of the appellants in the aforesaid complaint case. The Public Prosecutor, who conducted the case, failed to instruct the appellants to remain physically present on all the dates fixed in the cases, as a result, the appellants failed to attend the proceedings of the Court and even failed to submit their evidence although the show cause was filed on 24.1.2003. Ultimately, the case was decided ex parte, resulting the above mentioned order dated 28.10.2003.