KARACHI: A court has ordered K-Electric (KE), the electricity distribution company, to pay Rs19.3 million in compensation to the family of a minor child who died from electrocution over 6 years ago.
According to a private tv channel report, Senior Civil Judge East Karachi, Ambreen Jamal, announced the verdict in the case involving the death of 8-year-old Azhan Siddiqui during rains in 2017.
On Tuesday, Judge Ambreen issued the ruling against K-Electric. The petitioner’s lawyer argued that the company had failed to install guard wires to prevent such incidents.
The victim’s parents, acting as plaintiffs, held the company responsible for criminal negligence, lack of safety measures, and inadequate maintenance. They filed the case under the Fatal Accidents Act.
The court upheld their compensation claim, the lawyer stated. The parents alleged that electric wires snapped on a main street during heavy rain due to physical defects caused by K-Electric’s negligence. The live wire remained active after detaching from the pole, and proper repair work was neglected, according to their plea.
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They further argued that K-Electric had ignored system maintenance and periodic inspections of the deteriorating wires. The company failed to replace weak, fragile, and rusty wires prone to physical defects, which ultimately led to the fatal accident, they added.
The plaintiffs sought Rs14.5 million in compensation, deeming the amount reasonable and just based on principles outlined by superior courts under the Fatal Accidents Act of 1855.
After determining that the plaintiffs had substantiated their claims, the court ordered recovery of Rs14.5 million as compensation, along with an additional Rs4.82 million, “with markup at prevailing bank rates from the date of the decree until realization.”
