V. P. Gupta, J.—Plaintiff No. 1 (Bhagwant Sarup) was registered as a consumer No. F/487 with defendant No. 1 (M/s. Himalya Gas Company) for the supply of cooking gas. A gas connection was installed in his premises known as 141, Malhotra Building, Lower Bazar, Simla. The cooking gas cylinders used to be supplied by defendant No. I through its trained workmen and servants who used to replace old empty gas cylinder by installing a new g

2. The plaintiffs allege that they had booked replacement of a gas cylinder with defendant No. 1 on 3/4th June, 1975 because their previous gas cylinder had exhausted. Defendant No. 1 sent a cooking gas cylinder through defendant No. 5 (Gulam Mohamed) on 14-6-1975 at about 2.20 p. m. Defendant No. 5 kept the cylinder in the corridor and asked the plaintiffs to give some instrument for opening the cylinder and got a small axe meant for breaking fire wood and coal etc. It is alleged that defendant No, 5 gave two or three knocks to the gas cylinder which appeared to be defective. Plaintiff No. 3 (Brij Bala) asked defendant No. 5 to take back the gas cylinder as the same was defective but defendant No. 5 told her that it was his routine job and the