UNION OF INDIA Vs. M.P. DUGDHA MAHASANGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE claimant -respondent filed a claim petition before the Railway Claims Tribunal, Bhopal, claiming compensation of Rs. 75,000/ - towards damage to consigned goods. The Railway Claims Tribunal allowed the above claim petition for Rs. 70,000/ -.

(2.) UNDISPUTABLY on 14.11.1989, 9500 doses of frozen semen were booked from Bhopal to Urai under R.R. No. 347875. The above consignment was delivered on 28.1.1990 i.e. with undue delay after the lapse of about two and half months. The claimant -respondent herein sent notice dated 23.4.1990 (Annx.P -1) claiming Rs. 75,000/ - towards the price of the consigned goods. As the present appellant -railways did not comply with the notice hence, the claim petition was filed on behalf of the respondent.

(3.) IN para 5 of the claim petition filed before the Tribunal, the claimant -respondent alleged that the goods booked -the frozen semen was worth Rs. 75,000/ -. In clause 7(e) of the claim petition, also the claimant -respondent pleaded that on account of consigned goods rendered worthless, loss to the tune of Rs. 75,000/ - was caused to the claimant. Similar assertion was made by it in notice (Annx. P -1) sent to the appellant. Therefore, it appears from the above that according to the claimant -respondent, the price of the consigned goods was Rs. 75,000/ -. However, in clause 7(i) of the claim petition, the claimant has given the particulars of claim stating that the cost of the consigned goods was Rs. 44,650/ - and the cost of the container was Rs. 30,350/ -. As noticed earlier, the price of the container has nowhere been mentioned in notice (Annx. P/1) nor in the affidavit of B.K. Khemaria dated 31.1.1995, which has been filed in support of the claim petition.