Summary: The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court ruled on a tragic electrocution case, focusing on compensation and job provisions for the victim's family.
On October 7, 2020, a young man tragically died after coming into contact with a live wire in Virudhunagar District. The incident led to a police report against unknown officials of the Electricity Board for carelessness.
The court initially ordered TANGEDCO to pay Rs. 13,86,000 in compensation, which was much more than the usual Rs. 5,00,000. They also told the Electricity Board to offer a job to the victim's brother out of kindness, following the idea that those responsible should pay for the damage.
"The writ Court had directed to increase the compensation amount based on the formula used for Motor Vehicle Accident Cases."
THE SUPERINTENDING ENGINEER argued against the job offer, stating that such jobs are only for family members of employees who died while working. The Additional Advocate General argued that since the victim wasn't an employee, this rule shouldn't apply.
On November 25, 2025, Justices C.V. Karthikeyan and R. Vijayakumar canceled the job offer order, keeping the compensation but denying the job offer.
"Compassionate appointment can be granted only to the family members of an employee who had died while working."
The court decided that the compensation was enough for someone who wasn't an employee, sticking to the current policies. This case shows how courts need to balance being kind and following rules, especially in sad situations like this.
