State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission
Yog Raj And Another vs Icici Lombard General Insurance ... on 26 April, 2012
BEFORE DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL FORUM SOLAN, H H.P. STATE CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION, SHIMLA, CAMP AT MANDI. First Appeal No.20/2009 Date of Decision: 26.04.2012 1. Yog Raj son of Shri Paras Ram, aged 6 years; 2. Gulab Singh, aged 4 years son of Shri Paras Ram; Both minors, through their father and natural guardian Shri Paras Ram son of Shri Khudu, R/o Village Bhanwar, Post Office Maloh, Tehsil Sunder Nagar, District Mandi, H.P. .. Appellants Versus 1. ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company, Moon International Complex, Chhota, Shimla-171 002. 2. The Block Development Officer, Sunder Nagar, District Mandi, H.P. Respondents Coram Honble Mr. Justice Surjit Singh, President Honble Mr. Chander Shekhar Sharma, Member Honble Mrs. Prem Chauhan, Member Whether approved for reporting? For the Appellants: Mr. P.S. Sen, Advocate For the Respondent No.1: Mr. Vijay Verma, Advocate For the Respondent No.2: Mr. Ajay Thakur, A.D.A. O R D E R:
Justice Surjit Singh, President (Oral) Appellants are the minor sons of a young lady named Hima Devi, who died at the age of 28 on 03.04.2007 after having been treated for 3-4 days for consuming some wild fruit, which happened to be poisonous. They are aggrieved by order dated 17.12.2008 of Learned District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, Mandi, Camp at Sunder Nagar, whereby a complaint, under Section 12 of Consumer Protection Act, which they filed against the respondents, seeking issuance of direction to pay a sum of `25,000/- under Matri Shakti Bima Yojna which is applicable in case of death of mothers living below poverty line, has been dismissed.
2. Deceased Hima Devi, aged 28 was the mother of appellants-complainants. On 31.03.2007, she went to a forest to collect fuel wood. There she happened to consume some wild fruit considering the same to be fit for human consumption. The said fruit, however happened to be poisonous and caused poisoning. She was taken to Government Hospital, at Sunder Nagar in Mandi District, where she was treated for poisoning. When the condition started worsening, she was shifted to Zonal Hospital, Mandi. Here also, she was treated for poisoning, caused by wild poisonous fruit, known as abrus seeds. On 3rd April, 2007, she passed away. Post-mortem examination was conducted. Cause of death was shown to be of Cardiac Respiratory Arrest. Viscera was sent to Chemical Examiner, who found no poison.
3. On behalf of present appellants, who are minors (aged 6 and 4 at the time when the complaint was filed in the year, 2008), their father Paras Ram made an application to respondent No.2 for grant of `25,000/- under Matri Shakti Bima Yojna. Respondent No.2 approached respondent No.1 for payment of aforesaid amount of money, because said respondent No.2 pays premium to respondent No.1 for insuring the unnatural death of mothers of minor children, under the aforesaid scheme.
Respondent No.1 repudiated the claim on the ground that it was not a case of unnatural death as no poison was defected in the viscera.
4. Appellants-complainants then filed a complaint, under Section 12 of Consumer Protection Act, through their father and next friend Paras Ram.
That complaint was contested by respondent No.1. Plea that was raised in the reply was based on the aforesaid ground of repudiation of claim earlier.
5. Learned Forum has dismissed the complaint holding that this was a case of natural death, as the lady died of Cardiac Respiratory Arrest.
6. We have heard learned counsel for the parties and gone through the record.
7. There are a number of documents on record of Learned District Forum, proving beyond doubt that the deceased was initially shifted to Hospital at Sunder Nagar and then to Zonal Hospital Mandi and was being administered purgatives, as she was suspected to have consumed some poisonous wild fruit.
Reference may be made to initial discharge slip at page-25, per which she was admitted to Sunder Nagar hospital on 01.04.2007 and was then discharged on 02.04.2007, because of her having been referred to Zonal Hospital, Mandi for better and further treatment for indigestion of abrus seeds. Reference chit is available at page-26. She was admitted at Zonal Hospital, Mandi against bed head ticket available at pages 27 to 30. At Mandi also, she was treated for indigestion caused by abrus seeds. On 03.04.2007, when she was still admitted in Zonal Hospital at Mandi, she died. Post-mortem report was conducted. Report of post-mortem is available at pages 41 to 44 of Learned Forums file and cause of death is recorded as cardiac respiratory arrest.
8. Viscera was sent to State Forensic Laboratory Himachal Pradesh.
Report of said laboratory is available at page-40 of District Forums record. As per this report, no poison was detected in viscera. It is because of this report of Forensic Science Laboratory that Learned District Forum has held that this was a case of natural death.
We are unable to endorse the view taken by Learned District Forum. Before her death, deceased was under treatment for having consumed wild poisonous fruit.
She must have been given numerous purgatives including very strong ones. Chart of treatment available on record of Learned Forum shows that injections were given initially at Sunder Nagar and then at Zonal Hospital Mandi. These purgatives were supposed to have resulted in the removal of poison of abrus seeds from vital organs. It is only too well known that in all cases of poisoning, cardio respiratory system is adversely affected. The degree depends upon the quantum of poison. In the present case the deceased was treated continuously for three days at the hospitals for neutralizing the poison and before that some local decoctions can also legitimately be presumed to have been administered at home to save her life. Though, decoctions and medicines seem to have removed the poison from the body and more particularly the vital organs, yet they caused damage to cardio respiratory system to an extent that even after the poison ceased to be in the body, the poor lady had cardiac respiratory arrest.
9. As a result of the above stated position, appeal is accepted, impugned order is set aside and consequently, the complaint is allowed.
Respondent No.1 is ordered to pay an amount of `25,000/- together with interest at the rate of 9% per annum from the date of complaint to the date of actual payment and also to pay `10,000/- as litigation expenses, incurred by the appellants on pursuing the complaint and the present appeal.
10. One copy of this order be sent to each of the parties, free of cost, as per Rules.
(Justice Surjit Singh) President (Chander Shekhar Sharma) Member (Prem Chauhan) Member April 26, 2012.
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