The accident occurred near Sri M Visvesvaraya Layout, Manganahalli Nice Road, on March 23, 2022.
Credit: DH File Photo
Bengaluru: The High Court of Karnataka has declined to quash criminal proceedings against a Bescom junior engineer accused of dereliction of duty in a case where a transformer blast on March 23, 2022, led to the tragic deaths of a man and his daughter. The blast had occurred within the Jnanabharathi police limits in Bengaluru.
The court said compensation payments do not negate allegations of duty neglect.
Shivaraj (55) and his 19-year-old daughter Chaithanya had gone to the Chikka Basti area to book a venue for her engagement. While returning home, a transformer on the roadside near Sri M Visvesvaraya Layout, Manganahalli NICE Road Bridge, exploded. Hot oil spilled from the transformer, caught fire, and fatally injured Shivaraj and Chaithanya, who later succumbed to their burns at Victoria Hospital.
Following the incident, the police charged Bescom officials under IPC sections 285, 338, and 304A.
Junior engineer Mahanthesh S Nagur, one of the accused, contested the charges, claiming the accident resulted from contractors’ failure to maintain the transformer, not his. He noted that Shivaraj's widow had already received Rs 20 lakh in compensation.
However, Additional State Public Prosecutor BN Jagadeesh argued that Nagur bore direct responsibility for maintaining the transformer within his jurisdiction.
Justice M Nagaprasanna highlighted multiple complaints filed before the incident, urging the transformer’s repair. The police attached these complaints to the charge sheet, indicating prima facie evidence of negligence on the part of Nagur and other officials.
"Payment of any amount of compensation by Bescom can by no stretch of imagination absolve the officers of the allegation of dereliction of duty. It is altogether a different circumstance that the family of the deceased is consoled by payment of compensation. The petitioner who is charged with dereliction of duty along with AEE and AE should necessarily come out clean in the trial.
Payment of compensation can never override or mask the allegation of dereliction of duty. Today the incident may have happened to the deceased, and it can happen to others if the officers are left off the hook on the ground that compensation is paid to the family of the deceased,” Justice Nagaprasanna said.