Title - Railway Tribunal orders payment of compensation

Death of Soumya on February 1, 2011.
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The Railway Claims Tribunal, Ernakulam Bench, on Monday awarded a compensation of Rs. 4 lakh to the next of kin of Soumya, who was sexually abused and murdered while travelling from Ernakulam to Shornur by train on February 1, 2011.The Bench directed the Railways to pay the compensation with six per cent interest from the date of filing of the petition.The compensation was ordered on a petition filed by M. Sumathi, mother of Soumya.The Tribunal Bench, while issuing the order, had taken into consideration the Thrissur Fast Track Court’s order convicting and awarding death sentence to Govindasamy, the accused in the case. Rajesh Sukumaran, counsel for the petitioner, contended that the petitioner was liable to be compensated as the incident took place on a running train and on the Railway precincts. He also submitted that the legal heir of Soumya was entitled to get the maximum compensation of Rs. 4 lakh under the Railways Claims Tribunal Act.The Railways took the stand that that the Railway Ministry had already paid the kin of Soumya Rs. 3lakh immediately after the incident. Therefore, it could not further compensate the petitioner. However, the court dismissed these contentions while allowing the claim of the petitioner.

The tribunal also ordered that 50 per cent of the compensation amount should be fixed deposit in the name of Ms. Sumathi for a period of five years. The interest on the amount could be paid to the petitioner.

Soumya, 23, hailing from Shoranur, and an employee at a private firm at a shopping mall in Kochi was sexually abused after the convict had pushed her out of the running Ernakulam-Shoranur passenger train.

She was found unconscious by the railway track, near Vallathol Nagar railway station, and she succumbed to injuries five days later at the Thrissur Medical College.

Govindasamy was convicted based on 15 counts of evidence produced by the prosecution, including his presence in the train between 5.30 p.m. and 8.30 p.m., recovery of Soumya’s hairclip and a piece of keychain, buttons from the shirt of the accused found at the scene, semen found in the vaginal swab, his skin under the victim's nails and her mobile phone from Puduppariyaram in Palakkad.