Statutory deposit is mandatory for appeals under the Employees’ Compensation Act, affecting the stay of recovery orders.

ORDER :

1. The appellant-Shivalik Geo Tech Services Mohali based industrial concern in whose employment one Sunil Kumar serving as a Drilling Operator came to suffer accident resulting in his death while operating a drilling machine at Udaipur in district Lahoul (H.P). The occurrence took place on 28.06.2012.

2. The parents of the deceased-Sunil Kumar came to approach the Commissioner under the Employees Compensation (Assistant Labour Commissioner), Jammu with a claim petition under section 4-A of the Employees’ Compensation Act, 1923 on 26.05.2018 on file No. 24-D/E C. Act/2018 after earning condonation of delay in the matter of filing the claim petition.

3. In this claim petition, the appellant came to be impleaded as the respondent No. 1 whereas the insurer-National Insurance Company Limited came to be impleaed as the respondent No.2.

4. The appellant caused its appearance in the case and submitted its reply and thereafter on account of Covid-19 intervention, the appellant is said to have suffered ex parte proceedings whereas the National Insurance Company Limited attended the proceedings in the case which resulted in issuance of an award dated 15.11.2021 thereby awarding a compensation of an amount of Rs. 8,15,400/- on which compensation amount interest was calculated to an amount of Rs. 9,20,824/- @ 12% per annum w.e.f., 29.07.2012 i.e., the date of death of the deceased Sunil Kumar till its actual payment on account of delay in the matter of payment of compensation on the part of the appellant.

5. While the principal compensation amount of Rs. 8,15,400/- is said to have been paid by the National Insurance Company Limited thereby accepting the award but the award to the extent of payment of the interest amount has bothered the appellant which approached the Commissioner Employees Compensation (Assistant Labour Commissioner), Jammu with an application for setting aside of the said award which application came to suffer rejection in terms of an order dated 16.05.2024 and that is how the appellant now is coming in challenge against said award dated 15.11.2021 read with order dated 16.05.2024 in invoking remedy of appeal as provided under section 30 of the Employees Compensation Act, 1923.

6. The substantial questions of law are proposed in para 16 of the memo of appeal, the tone and tenor of which is the wrongful misrepresentation of facts on the part of the National Insurance Company Limited in not coming up with true copy of the insurance policy in terms whereof the entire liability was to be covered by the insurance company as may visit upon the appellant as being the insured in the context of injury to its workman. Thus, in principle, this appeal is involving a contest between the appellant and the National Insurance Company Limited without any role for the parents of the deceased who are named as respondents No. 1 and 2 herein.

7. Given the fact that an appeal under section 30 of the Employees Compensation Act, 1923 requires statutory deposit to be made which in the present case has not been done, this Court calls upon the learned counsel for the appellant to deposit an amount of Rs. 9,20,824/- with the Registrar Judicial, Jammu of this Court within a period of fifteen (15) days whereupon the said amount to be kept in a fixed deposit for an initial period of three months renewable thereafter till direction to the contrary.

Upon deposit of the aforesaid amount, the operation of the impugned award with respect to recovery of an amount of Rs. 9,20,824/- from the appellant shall come to stay.

8. Issue notice only to the respondent No. 3-National Insurance Company Limited Branch Office Ropar Chandigarh.

9. Send for the record of file No. 24-D/E C. Act/2018 titled “Mulkh Raj and anr Vs. Shivalik Geotech Head Office E -14, Industrial Area, Phase- 7 A.S Nagar (Mohali) Punjab and anr” and file No. ECA/03/2022 titled “Shivalik Geotech Head Office E-14, Industrial Area, Phase-7 A.S Nagar (Mohali) Punjab vs. Mulkh Raj” from the Commissioner