Smt Rachamma vs Union Of India on 22 April, 2009

[Cites 4, Cited by 1]

Karnataka High Court

Smt Rachamma vs Union Of India on 22 April, 2009

Bench: C.R.Kumaraswamy

IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BANGALOVR E. :'._V

DATED THIS THE 22"" DAY OF APRIL 2009.'<T_A.C]fif 

BEFORE

THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE C.R. Vi<UI\:TAR;A?sx;\/A.;$?T\?L'R}._,_"'TR§

M.F.A. NO.7616/2f:3_v(3*-74_(R:C'T)i_ T_ 

BETWEEN:

1. Smt. Rachamma     '  
W/o Late Sri Ba.sa.ya-.raja1pp_a_}§ajjVéI~rT},V '  '

2. Veeranna V  3 V * *  
S/o Late:"STi"Ba.$iava'%§3'j.a_ppVa' Kajjam,
Aged 44*Years. "      A

3. K. Shivasha":'anapp'a_  T' 
S/0 Lat_e,Sri B'as_avTaraja--pp'a Kajjam,
"Aged  years.  ______ H .
"AH a're..pr<evS'eritEay residing at
H T. N 03. 1 O *.Z '~«.63  - . V 
  Kurfsbar OrTé*,T; 
V Raichur 58.4 ~13}. .,,.APPELL/ANTS

V.   Sanghvi, Adv.)

  A   

G./'



Union of India
Rep. By the General Manager,
South Central Railway,

Secunderabad.  RESPONDEN"l5i_:::  

(By Sri N.S. Sanjay Gowda, Adv.)

This MFA is filed under section"--.2:3*{}.) of--".l.R.a'ilwa'y'"" it

Claims Tribunal Act against"._v't'h,e J'L:dgment "~.._'d'atc-'cl
20.3.2007 passed in O.A. NO.99'}'Q9 on th.e"fi*Ee or the
Railway Claims Tribunal, l3angaIVo«re_,"'Be'n.ch, allowing the
application filed under sect_io.n--1.'6 of"'t«he_y'Railway Claims
Tribunal Act for payment of'compset5is»ati_o-n;»._  --.

This MFA corn"i'ng" up, for-~'ad'mis--s'io.n_..Ithis day, the
Court deliveredthe,,fclE,_l,o;iNivn.g.,g_   .

This MFAx'ii.5%% ﬁled-V_  section 23(1) of Railway
C:_l-a'im_s  against the Judgment dated

 No.99/1999 on the file of the

:T,f.Railway'.Claims':f,rEhunal, Bangalore Bench, allowing the

--..C.lfapp__li'eation "fliled under Section--16 of the Railway Claims

V  for payment of compensation.

E/'



(2) One Sri Basavarajappa Kajjam was a railway

official and while travelling in KK express, he fell 

the train and succumbed to the injuries.

(3) The respondent - Railway1s_h.a_iie

case of the claimant and accordin*g_:."t~o it, 'iiijury_c:au'seVd' is a self inflicted injury.

(4) The sum' stibstarice"ot'*:.th.e_..:V.tinding of the Tribunal ls :53' u The the oral and documentary also the materials placed on r1eVco'r*d,V ijglwardedii laiiiiiicompensation of Rs.4,00,000/-- for deceased together with interest iWVrtVhe'reonA at 9% annum from the date of the order till ' d'atec_of actual payment.

ex the decésien of this Court in DB. AVALAKKI ANOTHER .vs. UNION OF INDIA reported En ILR.é...Z'jVD'.0§"~:'V"2. Kar. 1613 and submitted that the interest awarded from the date of the appiicatzliioniﬂ"

(8) Learned counsel for the re.sipa_ndent. s'u'bmi'ts as unden Under the Railway Cvi--ai.m=s'TAri.bon'alA""-'Act and the Rutes framed _the.reé{nde~rrj«_th_ere_» is i1ﬁC')Mv'prOViSi0n for awarding interestﬁonx':'the"*«eon1pe'n~siation amount. Even the limit of Therefore there is no question o'f~VaiNaVrtiéng interest on the compensation I a'rn.ount;'----- Learned co'L£'n'seI for the respondent relied on the"V"iiVdee:c.ision of the Andhra Pradesh High in'*-.._CivV_il Mirisscietianeous Appeai NO.160/2003, 2161, "i%'r*34§e i',tr354iiefnd 3860 of 2002 disposed of on 29.2.2008 that the interest cannot be awarded from date of the application.

6/ (9) The oniy question that arises for consideration in this appeal is whether the app|icara~tsfa.'r_'g_a~".;' entitied for interest from the date of the app.i.ic:Aaft.iVon.::o.r it from the date of the order?

(10) My answer to the abov_eVV'jq.uevistion' grinder for the foiiowing reasons:

(11) As per'i.3eAeté'o_ri'-2£.._oF~~_tiééiehjinterest Act, 1978, uniess the cori'te.>§t;othé:"wise"~redLi'i"re-S'; "Court" inciudes a Tribunai andan .

1-i:'r'''--.(y1;é--j{'Senctéi:=ri--3 o'f"'t'he Interest Act deals with power of itheii interest. Sectiori--3 of the ' A""i'r.terest"'Act ,__read~'sA as under:

Power of Court to aiiow interest:-- (1) In V."'...a'nyrlproceedihg for the recovery of any debt or damages or in any proceedings in which a ciaim for interest in respect of any debt or 2/ damages already paid is made, the Court may, if it thinks fit, allow interest to the person entitled to the debt or damages or to the person making such claim, as the <:asei"*..''' .' may be, at a rate not exceeding the curfﬁht A rate of interest, for the whole or part following period, that is to say,-l_ (8) ('3) if the proceedings ,ere__iate«".to" a Dayable by vi rtue instrument at a:"t:.ertain"'tiArjfiefthen, Afr'om' the date when'"th_ee-A Es7p_ayable to tvh'e"i' - tjltijateiiiifi-3 "'oF»_'-énst'i_'tu't'i"on of the proceedings;

if the mproVCee'd'ing's_;.'do not relate to any ;'such .Vde_bt',1 then, from the date l.{'sn"ent'ionediyinithis regard in a written .Vgi*i{en by the person entitled or making the claim to the liable that interest wilt be c'iaimed, to the date of institution of the it proceedings:

6/ a ._w'i'itteng' Provided that where the amount of debt or damages has been repaid before the institution of the proceedings, interest 2- not be allowed under this section period after such repayment. (2) Where, in any are mentioned in subjsectiopn_§_V(':1v)_,=:_

a) judgment, 0|'C'VIV'e"|f:' for a sLgn~.':tyyp;iiict-if Vinterest on d a ma_gwe:sv-,--_ he S or i th 0 u sa n d .""VUh¢§Sfénd"ndt't or includes 'éda'mag'es"min.4':""«--r'es.pect of personal ' gy.in}'{n'~é.es"t'o theviplaintiff or any other agrpersoniﬂ'o'r'"'én respect of a person's power conferred by that s"nb4v3ection shall be exercised so as to H ..inc'|ude in that sum interest on those damages or on such part of them as the Court considers appropriate for the whole or part of the period from the U' date mentioned in the notice to the date of institution of the proceedings, unless the Court is satisfied that there --1-

special reasons why no interest be given in respect of those da:ymages;' * V it (3) Nothing in this

a)sha|| app|y*--.i._nf relati-s.n" _

i) V iintyere.s_t"7_isfipayabie as of clebt; or upon rr--.s.yV"j;?rigi?.:t',-- 'Vir-tue of any i Vagfr-e:em'e--n_t';~-- or

- a'ny"".:deb't.t,'or damages upon 'V payment of interest is bairredy by virtue of an express agreement;

shaiiarrea W the compensation recoverabie for the dishonour of a bill of exchange, promissory note or cheque, as defined in .2/' 10 Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881; or

ii) the provisions of Rule 2- Order 11 of the First to the Code of Civil * V 1908; ? _ _ v_ (C) shall empower the "to_ interest upon in_t_erest.V__'.'..VVf'»v.__ (13) Normally__ the exercises jurisdiction to invoke such equitable to establish existence attracts equitable jurisdiction. learned counsel for the s_ubrriitted_..that 3udicia| Member was not abVp.ointed:fl'ribunal for more than five years. In lllmssupportfof higV'ii'j_contention, he has also produced the sheetsiof the Court below. The delay is caused hon-appointment of the Judicial Member to _,_Ti'ibunal. Hence the claimants shouid not be U 11 penaiised by not paying the interest from the date of the appiication. It is the contention of the learned for the respondent that there is no prov'i"s._i::onjjford' awarding of interest on the compensation'amou'n~t__"u-nVd,e'r'r__ the Railway Claims Tribunai Act_4and"'the. Ruies.t..f':ra:"neidé'"" A thereunder. As stated earlier, Sect_ion_--2 of-.t'_heV':Int3erest Act inciudes a Tribunai aridran Airt3.étrat_o»r;"«.p_Section--3 of the Interest Act permits j--vCoui§t 'to Va'Vi.!.roi}v interest.

Therefore the But the discretion a_'nCi"the Tribunaf has to award inte}-.est«'. to the facts and circumstances In the instant case, as staitedre'ar:lie.ri::JUdi_cia'iVMember was not appointed to the Trib1u--na!_r-arid":'«Vt.here,:'.1~~was no sitting on several hearing AT'-he in disposal of this case cannot be tothe appeliants and on the other hand the itVf"_«.:dep'la__Y"'is"attributable to the inaction on the part of the India in not appointing Judiciai Member to the 9/ 12 Tribunaf. In that View of the matter, interest has awarded from the date of appiication till payment.

(14) In View of the abo\fe_V"'djVsceS5Jen.,_V1'.:Vha._$S'w~.th;e foiiowing: ' oRhi§ﬂ§t"h

1) This Misce||a.he:<§t§.s

2) The order? :tQ~..i§'«.~1a':;Hd::"pf...ihterest from the date Qvfa---nd._ofnterest is awarded from the -'appiication tiii the date of actualVVVp'ayme_rit}.'A'~

Unlock Advanced Research with PRISMAI

Karnataka High Court