Bhanu Baishya v. The State of Assam and 4 Ors

ORDER Date : 22-03-2023 Heard Mr. W. Rahman, learned counsel for the petitioner; Ms. N. Bordoloi, learned Standing Counsel, Revenue & Disaster Management Department for the respondent no. 1; and Mr. N. Goswami, learned Junior Government Advocate, Assam for the respondent nos. 2 – 5.

¶2The petitioner has instituted this writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking inter alia a direction to the State respondent authorities to disburse an amount of ₹ 2,00,000/- in terms of a Notification dated 15.11.2014 of the Revenue & Disaster Management Department, Government of Assam claiming that she is the Next of Kin [NoK] of a deceased person viz. Late Mahendra Baishya. It is claimed that Late Mahendra Baishya died in a road traffic accident occurred at a public place.

¶3The petitioner has claimed to be the wife of the said deceased person, Late Mahendra Baishya.

¶4The case projected by the petitioner, in brief, is that on 28.06.2016, the petitioner's husband, Mahendra Baishya was proceeding towards Singimari as a pillion rider on a motorcycle. When he was so proceeding, at around 04-20 p.m., all of a sudden a cow ran across the road on the Roumari PWD Road and the rider of the motorcycle failing to control the motorcycle, hit the cow. As a result of the accident, the petitioner's husband fell down from the motorcycle and hit an electricity post which resulted in grievous injuries on his Page No. 3/6 person. Mahendra Baishya was immediately admitted at a health facility at Sualkuchi but the doctors there finding his condition serious, referred Mahendra Baishya to Nararaya Hospital. Later on, Mahendra Baishya was admitted at GNRC, Guwahati for better treatment. But on

29.06.2017, he succumbed to the injuries during the treatment at GNRC, Guwahati. In connection with the accident, a First Information Report [FIR] was lodged before the Officer In-Charge, Sualkuchi Police Station on 06.08.2017 alleging rash and negligent driving on the part of the rider of the motorcycle and on receipt of the FIR, the same was registered as Sualkuchi Police Station Case no. 130/2017 for the offences under Sections 279/304A, Indian Penal Code [IPC]. The Post-Mortem Examination [PME] on the dead body of the deceased was performed at the Gauhati Medical College & Hospital [GMCH], Guwahati on 30.06.2017 and as per the PME Report, the death of Mahendra Baishya was due to coma as a result of head injury sustained. It was opined that all the injuries sustained by the deceased were ante-mortem in nature and were caused by blunt force impact.

4.1. On an application being made, the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Kamrup [R], Amingaon has issued a Next of Kin [NoK] Certificate on 21.06.2022, recording that the petitioner as the wife and her two sons are the Next of Kins [NoKs] of Late Mahendra Baishya. The office of the Registrar of Birth & Death, Nowboicha Block PHC has issued a Death Certificate on 13.07.2017 recording the death of Mahendra Baishya on 29.06.2017. After the death of her husband, the petitioner stated to have submitted a Representation dated 26.05.2022 before the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Kamrup, Amingaon [the respondent no. 2] seeking the ex gratia amount of ₹ 2,00,000/- for the deceased person in terms of the policy framed by the Government in the Revenue & Disaster Management Department and as notified by the Notification dated 15.11.2014.

4.2. The respondent no. 3 has filed an affidavit-in-opposition and at paragraph no. 3 of the said affidavit-in-opposition, the factum of registration of the FIR and the submission of a charge-sheet against the rider of the motorcycle on 30.07.2017 in connection with Sualkuchi Police Station Case no. 83/2017 have been admitted. When no response was received from any of the respondent authorities as regards disbursal of the ex gratia amount, the petitioner has approached this Court by this writ petition. Page No. 4/6

¶5It has, thus, been contended on behalf of the petitioner that she is one of the Next of Kins [NoKs] of the deceased person who died in a road traffic accident occurred on

28.06.2017 at a public place. It is further contended that as such Next of Kin [NoK] of the deceased person killed in such accident, she is entitled to receive the quantum of relief in terms of the policy formulated by the State Government, which has been notified by the Notification dated 15.11.2014.

¶6On perusal of the said Notification dated 15.11.2014, it is noticed that the same has, inter alia, made a provision for ex gratia grant to the Next of Kin [NoK] of person killed due to accident at a public place or in a public carrier [other than killed by extremist/terrorist, miscreants and due to firing of security forces] and such relief has been quantified at ₹ 2,00,000/- for each deceased person in respect of an accident which had occurred in the State on or after the date of the Notification i.e. 15.11.2014. It is noticed that by the Notification dated 15.10.2014, the State Government had revised the quantum of relief in the form of ex gratia in supersession of the previous Notification in that regard. It has been brought to the notice of the Court that due to certain ambiguity with regard to the term, 'public place', another Notification bearing no. R.R.94/2003/288 dated 15.10.2014 came to be issued by the Revenue & Disaster Management Department, Government of Assam for removal of the ambiguity. As per the Notification dated 15.10.2014 [supra], the word 'public place' will mean any street, alley, park, public building, any place of business or assembly open to or frequented by the public or any other place, which is open to the public view or to which public has access.

¶7By order dated 10.08.2022, the respondents were put to notice. But till date, no response has been filed by any of the respondents.

¶8Both Ms. Bordoloi and Mr. Goswami are not in disagreement to the fact that in this writ petition, the petitioner has claimed that the alleged road traffic accident in question had occurred subsequent to 15.11.2014. It is submitted by Ms. Bordoloi and Mr. Goswami, in unison, that before placing the matter before the Commissioner and Secretary to the Page No. 5/6 Government of Assam, Revenue & Disaster Management Department, the jurisdictional Deputy Commissioner shall have to examine the matter in order to verify the veracity of the claim of the petitioner, with regard to, firstly, the alleged road traffic accident which stated to have occurred at a public place resulting in the death of the person, mentioned above; secondly, the claim of the petitioner as one of the Next of Kins [NoKs] of the person who stated to have died as a result of the said alleged road traffic accident, and thirdly, the claim regarding occurrence of the accident at a public place.

¶9This Court has already recognized the rationale behind the policy formulated by the State and notified vide the Notification dated 15.11.2014, in its Order dated 04.05.2019 passed in the writ petition, W.P.[C] no. 2100/2019 [Gunalata Das vs. the State of Assam] and similar other writ petitions, by observing that the dominant purpose of the policy is to provide some succour immediately to the Next of Kin [NoK] of the deceased to tide over the initial shock and hardship before lodging claim for just compensation under the law. Thus, a claim for the relief of ex gratia grant under the policy calls for an expeditious consideration.

¶10Taking an overall view of the submissions advanced by the learned counsel for the parties and the rationale behind the policy so formulated, this Court is of the considered view that instead of keeping the writ petition pending for any further period, waiting for responses from the respondents, the same can be disposed of as the claim for relief in the form of ex gratia to the petitioner raised in this writ petition as one of the Next of Kin [NoK] of the person killed in a road traffic accident, the facts of which are briefly narrated above, is to be verified and considered first at the end of the jurisdictional Deputy Commissioner. After such verification and consideration of all relevant aspects including the three aspects, as highlighted by the learned counsel for the State respondents, by calling for reports from the other concerned authorities, wherever necessary, the proposal can thereafter, be forwarded by the jurisdictional Deputy Commissioner along with his report, to the Commissioner and Secretary to the Government of Assam, Revenue & Disaster Management Department for release of ex gratia amount in terms of the Notification dated 15.11.2014, if the petitioner and/or any other Next of Kins [NoKs] is/are found entitled to receive the same. The Page No. 6/6 Commissioner and Secretary to the Government of Assam, Revenue & Disaster Management Department can thereafter, sanction the quantum of relief for disbursal to the petitioner and/or any other Next of Kins [NoKs] found entitled, in terms of the Notification dated

15.11.2014. It is accordingly ordered. The entire exercise in respect of the case involved in this writ petition should be completed by the above respondent authorities within a period of 3 [three] months from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order by the office of Deputy Commissioner, Kamrup [R], Amingaon along with a copy of the writ petition with the annexures, from the petitioner. The petitioner and/or the other Next of Kins [NoKs] of the deceased person is/are directed to extend her/their assistance and cooperation during the process of such verification and shall furnish the relevant information/documents, available at her/their disposal, to facilitate the process of verification, as and when asked for.

¶11With the observations made and directions given above, the writ petition stands disposed of. No cost.

JUDGE Comparing Assistant

PageoNo.o1/6 GAHC010157372022 ooooooo ooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooTHEoGAUHATIoHIGHoCOURTo (HIGHoCOURToOFoASSAM,oNAGALAND,oMIZORAMoANDoARUNACHALoPRADESH)o CaseoNo.o:oWP(C)/5177/2022o BHANUoBAISHYAo W/OoLT.oMAHENDRAoBAISHYA,o VILL.-oBATHAN,oMADHABPUR,o P.S.-oSUALKUCHI,oDIST.-oKAMRUPo(R),oASSAM,oPIN-o781103. VERSUSo THEoSTATEoOFoASSAMoANDo4oORS.o REP.oBYoTHEoCOMMISSIONERoANDoSECRETARYoTOoTHEoGOVT.oOFoASSAM,o REVENUEo(RELIEFoANDoREHABILITATION)oANDoDISASTERo MANAGEMENToDEPTT.,oDISPUR,oGHY-o6. 2:THEoDEPUTYoCOMMISSIONER oKAMRUPo(R) oAMINGAON oASSAM oPIN-o781031. 3:THEoSUPERINTENDENToOFoPOLICE oKAMRUPo(R) oAMINGAON oASSAM oPIN-o781031. 4:THEoCIRCLEoOFFICER oHAJOoREVENUEoCIRCLE oP.O.oANDoP.S.-oHAJO oDIST.-oKAMRUPo(R) oASSAM oPIN-o781102. 5:THEoOFFICER-IN-CHARGE oSUALKUCHIoPOLICEoSTATION oP.O.oANDoP.S.-oSUALKUCHI Page No. 2/6 DIST.- KAMRUP (R) ASSAM PIN- 781103 Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. W RAHMAN Advocate for the Respondent : GA, ASSAM BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANISH CHOUDHURY