The court clarified that the State Electricity Board cannot be held guilty of negligence when victims were electrocuted due to illegal hooking for theft of electricity.

Judgment

SUJATA V. MANOHAR, R. P. SETHI, J.

( 1 ) THE learned counsel for the petitioners has stated that an ex gratia payment of rs. 50,000 by them to the heirs of each of the deceased persons is not being objected to by the petitioners. The only grievance of the petitioners relates to an observation in the impugned judgment that two victims had died because of the negligence of the petitioner State Electricity Board. Looking to the fact that the two victims were electrocuted because of an illegal hooking for the purpose of theft of electricity, the petitioners cannot be held guilty of negligence although they may have stated that there is a need for conducting dehooking raids more frequently.

( 2 ) LOOKING to the circumstances, although the impugned order is maintained, the observation that the two victims had died because of the negligence of the State electricity Board is deleted from the order.

( 3 ) WITH these observations, the special leave petition is dismissed.