(1.) Heard Counsel for the Petitioners on admission. No notice was issued in this matter to the Respondent nor she has filed any caveat. Counsel for the Petitioners submitted before us that the Petitioners had filed detailed written statement which was not considered by the District Forum while deciding the matter on merits; that the transaction in question was commercial transaction and no expert opinion has been filed by the Complainant. He further submitted that the State Commission dismissed the appeal on the ground that copy of the impugned order was received by the Petitioners on 23.2.2009 and unduly very long time was taken in filing the appeal. According to learned counsel for the Petitioner the copy of the order of the District Forum which was annexed alongwith appeal had been received by the Petitioner alongwith execution application filed by the Complainant and the said copy had not been applied by the Petitioners. He, therefore, contends that the order of the fora below is required to be set aside. On the question of delay he has placed reliance judgment of the Apex Court in Housing Board, Haryana v. Housing Board Welfare Association and others,1995 3 CPJ 128.
(2.) The complaint was filed on 25.11.2005. The case of the Complainant is that the Complainant is self employed and was running piggery farm. The Complainant had purchased 13 vials of swine fever vaccine from the Opposite Parties Nos.3,4,5 and 6, which were manufactured by Opposite Parties Nos.1 and 2, for a sum of Rs.1,255. The said vaccine was given to 65 pigs. However, in spite of vaccination, the pigs died due to swine fever resulting in loss of Rs. 4,98,000 being the price of the said pigs. All the Respondents had filed written statements, but after that none of them contested the proceedings any more. The Complainant filed affidavit evidence dated 23.3.2006. Thereafter, the Complainant filed affidavit evidence of Dr. Raju Kalita, Dr. Bhupen Das, Dr. Pranjit Baruah and Dr. Dilip Sarma. The Petitioner also filed the post-mortem report of the pigs.
(3.) Relying upon the affidavit evidence filed by the Complainant, the District Forum ordered payment of compensation of Rs. 4,98,000 for loss due to death of pigs, besides, Rs. 5,000 towards cost of litigation. The District Forum held that the vaccine, in question, has been manufactured by Opposite Party Nos. 1 and 2. The District Forum after going through the evidence of veterinary expert came to the conclusion that the vaccine manufactured by Opposite Parties Nos. 1 and 2 was ineffective which caused the death of the pigs. The District Forum also relied upon the examination of the kidney and spleen samples of the dead animals.