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Judgment
The instant appeal has been preferred by the State of Rajasthan through the Secretary, Irrigation Department, Jaipur as well as the Executive Engineer, the Assistant Engineer and the Junior Engineer, Irrigation Division Ist, Bhilwara. Being aggrieved by the order-cum-award dated 25.04.1996 passed by the Labour Commissioner, Bhilwara in Claim Case No.19/86 whereby, the claim for workmen compensation filed by the respondent Babu Khan was accepted and he was awarded a sum of Rs.38,042/- as compensation for the death of his wife Smt. Mumtaz on 19.05.1986.
I have heard and considered the submissions advanced at Bar and have minutely gone through the impugned award as well as the original record.
The claim petition came to be filed by the respondent-Babu Khan before the Commissioner, Workmen Compensation, Bhilwara under Section 22 of the Workmen Compensation Act, 1923 with the allegation that his wife Smt. Mumtaz was engaged on the famine relief operations undertaken by the Irrigation Department. Construction of Rupaliya Dam was being undertaken by the respondent Irrigation Department. Smt. Mumtaz was employed in the famine relief operations from 13.05.1986. She was assigned to do the job of drowning water from the well and pour the same into the lime grinder. On 19.05.1986 in the morning at about 9 to 10, Smt. Mumtaz while on famine relief duty, went to the well for fetching water, however, she slipped therein and expired on duty. As per the claimant Babu Khan, Mumtaz expired on duty while being employed with the Irrigation Department and thus he was entitled to compensation under the Workmen Compensation Act, 1923.
In reply to the claim, the respondents disputed the assertions made by the claimant and stated that Mumtaz had not been engaged to work in the famine relief operations at the Rupaliya Dam. Her name was never entered in muster roll and thus, the claimant Babu Khan was not entitled to any compensation whatsoever.
In support of this assertion, the Department produced the photostat copies of the relevant muster rolls on the record of the claim case. In these muster rolls, the name of Smt. Mumtaz is not mentioned at any point of time between 13th to 19th May, 1986.
In addition thereto, on going through the original record, I find that the investigating officer got the postmortem of Mumtaz carried out and received the postmortem report which was proved by the claimant Babu Khan as Ex.P/5. In this postmortem report, the age of Smt. Mumtaz is mentioned as 17 years. Thus, being under 18 years of age, she was not entitled to be employed in any Government project.
In the Final Report under Section 174, Cr.P.C., the Investigating Officer concluded that Smt. Mumtaz was trying to drew drinking water from the well when she slipped therein and drowned.
In view of these material facts, I am of the firm opinion that the claimant Babu Khan failed to prove by leading any plausible evidence that his wife the deceased Smt. Mumtaz was ever employed as a labourer in the famine relief operations being undertaken by the Irrigation Department at Rupaliya dam. If at all, the claimant was desirous of proving this fact, any of the co-workers could have been examined to give a statement on oath that Smt. Mumtaz was as a matter of fact working on the Famine Relief Project at the Dam. Thus, this Court is of the firm opinion that the claimant failed to prove the existence of relationship of employer-employee between the Irrigation Department and Smt. Mumtaz and as a consequence, the provisions of the Workmen Compensation Act, 1923 could not have been invoked so as to grant him compensation upon her death. As such, the Tribunal was absolutely unjustified in awarding compensation to the claimant Babu Khan.
As a result of the discussion made herein above, I am of the firm view that the impugned award is absolutely bad and unsustainable on facts as well as law.
Thus, the appeal deserves to be and is hereby allowed. The impugned award dated 25.04.1996 is hereby quashed and set aside.
Record be be returned to the learned Tribunal forthwith.