JUDGMENT

First opposite party in ECC No.330 of 2017 of the Employees Compensation Commissioner (Industrial Tribunal), Thiruvananthapuram has filed this appeal. Son of the 1^st respondent and the brother of the 2^nd respondent – Sri.Sreekumar, while operating a hitachi machine in a quarry owned by the appellant, on 08.05.2013 at about 10.00 a.m. sustained serious injuries in an accident and succumbed to it. Before the Commissioner respondents 1 and 2 claimed an amount of Rs.10 lakhs as compensation from the appellant and the 3^rd respondent – insurer. The Commissioner allowed the application and granted Rs.8,54,280/- as compensation with interest @ 12% from the date of accident till the deposit of the same. An amount of Rs.1,709/- was allowed as cost and Rs.5,000/- was allowed towards funeral expenses.

2. In the appeal, the main contention raised is that there was no evidence to prove the alleged employer-employee relationship between the appellant and the deceased. According to the appellant inspite of total lack of evidence to prove the employer-employee relationship, the Commissioner proceeded to hold that the deceased was an employee of the appellant and the accident arose out of an