Dismissed
Sunita Devi W/O Babulal v. the Jaipur Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited
Rajasthan HCCW/1549/2024
Case brief
from the order text
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JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN BENCH AT JAIPUR…
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JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN BENCH AT JAIPUR…
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[2024:RJ-JP:15542]
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN BENCH AT JAIPUR
S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 1549/2024
Sunita Devi W/o Babulal, Aged About 53 Years, Resident Of Shyalawas Khurd, Police Station Bandikui, District Dausa (Raj.)
----Petitioner/Applicant
Versus
----Respondents/Non-Applicants
For Petitioner(s) : Mr. G.S. Gouttam For Respondent(s) :
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MAHENDAR KUMAR GOYAL
Judgment / Order
03/04/2024
This writ petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India is preferred assailing the legality and validity of the judgement dated 13.09.2023 passed by the learned Permanent Lok Adalat (for brevity, “the learned PLA”) in Case No.75/2023 whereby, an application filed by the petitioner/applicant (for brevity, “the applicant”) under Section 22C of the Legal Services Authority Act, 1987, has been dismissed.
The relevant facts in brief are that the applicant filed an application against the respondents/non-applicants (for brevity, “the non-applicants”) stating therein that her 17 goats died on account of electrocution as the high tension line broke down and fell upon them on 25.05.2022 at about 9:00 am when they were grazing in the field. Alleging that it so occurred on account of
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gross negligence on the part of the non-applicants, a total compensation of Rs.11,41,000/- was claimed under various heads. The non-applicants in their reply submitted inter alia that the applicant has accepted a sum of Rs.51,000/- vide cheque no.584528 dated 09.09.2022 towards full and final settlement of the price of the goats having died in the accident. After hearing the parties, the learned PLA dismissed the application filed by the applicant vide judgement dated 13.09.2023.
Assailing the order, learned counsel for the applicant submitted that the learned PLA did not appreciate that the compensation of Rs.51,000/- received by her was towards interim compensation. He further submits that the learned PLA has failed to appreciate that as per the medical opinion, total price of the goats was Rs.2,41,000/- and she was also entitled for compensation towards loss of earning and mental agony. He, therefore, prays that the writ petition be allowed, the judgement dated 13.09.2023 be quashed and set aside and the applicant may be awarded the compensation as claimed in the application.
Heard. Considered.
While dismissing the application filed by the applicant, the learned PLA has recorded a categorical finding that at the time of arguments, her learned counsel candidly admitted that she has accepted the compensation from the non-applicants out of her free will. It was also held that there was no rebuttal to the claim by the non-applicants that she has received the sum of Rs.51,000/- towards full and final settlement. It was further observed that the doctor was not authorized to assess the value of the goats and the applicant has not substantiated her claim for
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compensation by any evidence. This Court is in respectful agreement with the reasonings assigned by the learned PLA vide its judgement dated 13.09.2023. The applicant has not submitted any evidence to establish her claim that she received the sum of Rs.51,000/- as an interim compensation only and not towards full and final settlement of the claim. Most importantly, before this Court, the learned counsel did not dispute the observation of the learned PLA that her counsel has admitted that the applicant has received the compensation of Rs.51,000/- as the price of the goats. This Court is also of the view that the doctor did not have expertise to assess the value of the goats. Further, the postmortem report does not reveal any basis for assessing the value of the goats. In view of the aforesaid, this Court does not find the judgement dated 13.09.2023 to be suffering from any such perversity or manifest error of law/fact so as to warrant interference of this Court under Article 227 of the Constitution of India.
Resultantly, this writ petition is dismissed being devoid of merit.
Pending application(s), if any, also stands disposed of accordingly.
(MAHENDAR KUMAR GOYAL),J
PRAGATI/45
1 issue framed by the court
Was the PLA's dismissal of the compensation claim for electrocution of goats perverse, given a Rs.51,000/- full and final settlement acceptance and lack of evidence on goat valuation?
2 provisions across 2 enactments
Sunita Devi W/o Babulal
The Jaipur Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited, Through Manager And Director, Jaipur
The Jaipur Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited, Through Assistant Engineer, Bandikui
Mahendar Kumar Goyal
As recorded by the court registry
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