Accidental death from falling off a train is an unfortunate event: Calcutta High Court grants Rs. 8 lakh compensation to the victim’s family.

The Calcutta High Court granted Rs. 8 Lakhs in compensation to the family of the victim after determining that the victim’s death resulted from an accidental fall from a passenger train in an “untoward incident.” The Court overturned the Railway Claims Tribunal’s decision and accepted the appeal from the deceased’s legal heirs, who lost their loved one after he fell from a train near Ramrajatala Railway Station. The Bench ruled that the death qualified as an “untoward incident” under Section 124A of the Railways Act, 1989, which entitled the family to compensation. Justice Shampa Dutt (Paul) stated, “The D.P. memo, the M.O.’s opinion, the injuries in the post-mortem report, and the FIR of the U.D. case all confirm that the victim died from an accidental fall from a passenger train (Untoward Incident).”

Advocate Navin Mittal represented the Appellants, while Advocate Heranba Narayan Datta represented the Respondents. The family argued that the deceased fell from a crowded train and suffered injuries that led to his death. The Tribunal had rejected the claim from the deceased’s wife, claiming there was no proof that he was a legitimate passenger and no evidence to show the death was an untoward incident. The Railways contended that the case did not fall under Section 123 (c) of the Act and Section 124A of the Railways (Amendment) Act, 1994, denying any negligence or misconduct. The High Court observed that the deceased had a valid second-class railway ticket, and the D.P. memo, post-mortem report, and U.D. case FIR all consistently indicated that the death was due to an accidental fall from the train.

The Court noted that the tribunal’s findings on page 5 of the Judgment regarding the ticket contradict the conclusions in paragraphs 1 and 2, where the ticket was accepted by the Hon’ble member (Technical) when the amendment petition was approved. As a result, the Court stated, “The order being appealed from, issued by the Hon’ble Member Technical of the Railway Claims Tribunal, Calcutta Bench on 06.10.2010 in claim application no. A/699/2002 under Section 124(A) of the Railways Act, 1989, is not in line with the law and is therefore overturned.” The High Court then approved the Application.

Cause Title: Sadhan Dalui & Ors. v. Union Of India