BHOPAL SUGAR INDUSTRIES LIMITED Vs. SUMITRA BAI BATTAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS petition under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India has been filed by the petitioners for quashing the order, dated 25-71974, passed by the Commissioner for Workmen's Compensation, Bhopal (hereinafter referred to as "the Commissioner ") in case No. 16 of 1973.

(2.) THE facts giving rise to this petition are as follows: The respondents filed an application under the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act") before respondent No. 6 Commissioner claiming a lumpsum payment of Rs. 7,000 or more as the case may be from petitioner No. 2, who is the Manager of petitioner No. 1, on the ground that Shri Battan was a workman employed with petitioners and so on 21-4-1972 at about 1-30 p. m. , while on duty was bitten by a snake resulting in his death. It is alleged that on that day while the deceased was on duty for irrigating sugarcane crop he after completing his work of irrigating the portion of plot No. 97 of sugarcane crops at Mungaoli Farm came out of that plot and sat under a nearby Khajur tree awaiting for his co-workers to come out of the plot so that he alone with those co-workers may proceed to other sugarcane plots for irrigating them. It was while he was so sitting that the deceased was bitten by a snake.

(3.) THE petitioner-company disputed the claim and inter alia raised an objection that the deceased Battan was not a workman as defined under Section 2 (1) (n) of the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923,