Presumption Favors Claimant In Railway Accident Claims; Non-Recovery Of Ticket Not Fatal: Rajasthan High Court

 

The Rajasthan High Court set aside an order of the Railways Claims Tribunal that had rejected a compensation claim in relation to the death of a petitioner’s son following an alleged railway mishap, holding that the tribunal erred in law in denying the claim on a technical ground. The bench, led by Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand, was hearing a petition filed by a mother after the tribunal refused her claim on the basis that no valid journey ticket was found in the possession of her deceased son when his body was recovered from the railway tracks. The petitioner argued that her son was travelling in the train with a valid ticket and that a sudden jerk caused him to fall out of the train and suffer fatal injuries. Despite this, the tribunal had rejected her claim, reasoning that in the absence of a ticket, it could not be presumed that the deceased was a bona fide passenger aboard the train. The railway authorities had also contended, based on the inquest report, that no valid ticket was found on the deceased, and further asserted that the body was found split in two owing to being run over by another train, thereby distinguishing this from a case of injuries sustained due to falling from the train. The High Court, in its review of the matter, referred to the Supreme Court’s ruling in Union of India v Rina Devi, clarifying that while mere presence of a body on railway premises or tracks is not in itself conclusive proof that the deceased was a bona fide passenger, the mere absence of a ticket does not necessarily negate that claim. The court observed that initially the onus is on the claimant to establish relevant facts, which can be done by an affidavit, after which the burden shifts to the railways to disprove those facts if they can. Rising to the issues at hand, the High Court noted that the absence of a ticket with the body did not automatically weaken the claim that the deceased was travelling on the train, particularly where there was no evidence brought on record by the railway authorities to show that the deceased had committed suicide or been struck by another train causing the fatal injuries. The court emphasised that the statutory presumption in cases of untoward incidents occurring within railway premises or on railway tracks lies against the railway authorities unless evidence is presented to the contrary. Given that the railways had failed to produce any evidence proving suicide or alternate causes for the body being found on the tracks, the High Court held that the tribunal had committed an error in law by rejecting the compensation claim on the ground of non-recovery of a ticket. Consequently, it set aside the impugned judgment and remitted the matter to the tribunal for fresh consideration in light of the correct legal principles regarding presumption of liability and burden of proof in railway accident claims. The court’s ruling reinforces that non-recovery of a journey ticket alone cannot be fatal to a claim, and that untoward incidents on railway premises attract a presumption against the railway authorities unless rebutted. The matter was therefore directed to be heard afresh by the tribunal in accordance with the law as articulated by the High Court.

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