IMPORTANT POINT
Ex-gratia compensation under specific notifications is limited to accidents involving unidentified vehicles or acts of violence; identified vehicular accidents must be pursued through the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal.

Judgment :

N. UNNI KRISHNAN NAIR, J.

Heard Mr. W. Ramhan, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Ms. G. Hazarika, learned standing counsel, Revenue Department, and Ms. Usha Das, learned Addl. Senior Government Advocate, appearing on behalf of their respective respondents.

2. The petitioner, herein, by way of instituting the present proceeding, has prayed for a direction upon the respondent authorities for payment of ex-gratia compensation to her in respect of the death of occasioning to her son Late Aminul Islam on account of a vehicular accident which had occurred on 18.01.2014.

3. As projected in the writ petition, on 18.01.2014, when the son of the petitioner, named-above, was proceeding by a motor cycle from Chenga towards Nagaon College, he had met with an accident and a Mini Bus having AS-01-EC-6710 moving towards Guwahati in a rash and negligent manner, hit the motorcycle of the son of the petitioner, causing grievous injury to the petitioner along with injury caused to the pillion rider. The son of the petitioner although taken to the Hospital, was declared dead on arrival. In view of the said accident occasioning, the Uncle of the petitioner Ismail Hussain Khan had lodged an First Information Report(FIR) in the matter with the Officer in-charge of Barpeta Police Station. The petitioner, herein, thereafter, had approached the respondent authorities praying for grant of ex-gratia compensation in terms of the Notification, dated 24.04.2007, by way of filing a representation, dated 07.04.2022. The said representation of the petitioner not being attended to by the respondent authorities and the compensation as prayed for by her not being released; the petitioner, herein, has instituted the present proceeding.

4. At the outset, it is to be noted that the learned counsel for the petitioner on a query made by this Court, has submitted that basing on the accident leading to the death of the son of the petitioner; a Motor Accident Claim Tribunal proceeding was instituted and compensation has been granted therein to the claimants.

5. The petitioner, in the present proceeding, has prayed for grant of compensation basing on the Notification, dated 24.04.2007 and the Notification, dated 15.11.2014. Vide the Notification, dated 24.04.2007, the compensation as stipulated for relief to the family in respect of the persons who were killed/injured due to bomb blasts, group clashes/ extremist activities, accidental causes, etc., in terms of the Notification, dated 22.09.1998, was enhanced. Thereafter, vide Notification, dated 15.11.2014, the quantum of relief as stipulated vide Notification, dated 24.04.2007, was further revised.

6. A perusal of the Notification, dated 24.04.2007, reveals that for accidental deaths also, ex-gratia compensation was being provided by the State. In terms of the Notification, dated 15.11.2014, for accidental death; ex-gratia compensation to the next-of-kin to the persons killed on account of the accident occurring in public place or in any public carriers, was fixed at Rs. 2 lakhs. It is the said ex-gratia compensation amount of Rs. 2 lakhs that is now being sought to be directed to be released to the petitioner on account of the death of her son in a vehicular accident occurring in a public place.

7. A co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Monisa Khatun @ Monisha Khatun [judgment & order, dated 21.06.2024, in WP(c)2700/2023] had considered the same issue. On consideration of the case laws as referred to by the learned counsels appearing for the parties to the proceeding, therein; the co-ordinate Bench of this Court had drawn the following conclusions:

“ 14) In this case in hand, the claim of the Petitioner is on the basis that her husband was killed due to an accident in public place which comes within the ambit of serial no. 3 of the notification dated 15.11