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Synopsis

The Chhattisgarh High Court recently awarded a sum of Rs 6,50,000 as ex gratia amount to the father of a deceased seven years old girl who died due to complications of a stray dog bite in 2018. 

The bench of Justice Parth Prateem Sahu passed the order in a writ petition moved by the father of the deceased girl seeking compensation for the loss suffered by him on account of the death of his child.

The girl, who was returning home from school alone, was attacked by a stray dog on March 22, 2018. She suffered serious injuries on her face, head, etc.

Her initial treatment was done at a government hospital at Bodla in district Kawardha (Kabirdham), however, later on, she had to be transferred to a bigger hospital at Raipur.

The girl succumbed to her injuries on April 6, 2018. Since she had died due to a stray dog bite, her father moved an application before Sub Divisional Officer (Revenue) Bodla, claiming compensation from the government relief fund.

However, the claim was rejected on the ground that there is no provision under the Revenue Book Circulars (RBC) for awarding compensation in a case where death is caused due to a stray dog bite.

Thereafter, the father moved the high court. His counsel argued that there is a duty cast on the state authorities to ensure that human inhabiting areas are protected from any attack by street / stray dogs.

Since the respondents failed to curb the menace of stray dogs by taking all possible steps, which amounts to negligence, the petitioner is entitled for compensation, the counsel for the father pressed. 

He relied upon the high court's decision in Shobha Ram vs. State of CG & ors (2018) where the court had allowed a compensation of Rs.10,00,000 to a man whose wife had died due to a street dog bite. 

The petition was opposed by the state counsel who argued that the Revenue Book Circular does not allow the State Government to grant compensation for the death due to stray/rabid dogs bite.

He added that the incident happened because the little girl was returning home alone. If some elders were with the child, no such incident would have occurred, the state counsel asserted. 

"Untimely and unnatural death of a child cannot be valued or compensated in terms of money as it is a perennial grief to the parents and other family members and such a loss would surely lead to mental agony and trauma," observed the court while stressing that identical issue had come up before the high court in Shobha Ram case. 

The high court further referred to a suo motu matter of 2017 regarding the death of a girl due to rabies after dog bites where it had granted compensation of Rs.10 Lakh to the mother of the victim.

Therefore, keeping in mind the earlier decisions and the facts of the present case, court found the father eligible for compensation. 

Case Title: Vijay Das Manikpuri v. State of Chhattisgarh and Others