1. The solitary issue which crops up for consideration in the present first appeal filed at the instance of unsuccessful plaintiffs, viz., husband, sons and daughter of the deceased Basantidevi who died of electrocution, is whether the trial Court was justified in non-suiting them on the ground that the negligence of Madhya Pradesh Electricity Board (hereinafter referred to as "MPEB") was not proved in the suit for damages.

2. The relevant facts leading to aforesaid controversy is that on the fateful night of 10.7.1997 when the said Basantidevi came out of her house, came in contact with the live electric wire, in which the electricity was flowing and the electric shock received by Basantidevi, resulted in her death. A damage suit was filed in the Court of District Judge Bhind, registered as Civil Suit No. 9-N97 ED and a neighbour Naresh Soni and the Madhya Pradesh Electricity Board were impleaded as the defendants. The averments were that Rajesh Soni had in clandestine monarch indulged in pilferage of the electricity and the wire which he used for siphoning the electricity has fallen down in the night and Basantidevi came in the contact unaware. It was also alleged before t