Allahabad High Court: 5 month old fetus is a separate person in the eyes of the court, will be eligible for compensation

Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court has given an important and historic decision saying that an unborn fetus living in the womb for more than 5 months will be considered a ‘person’ in the eyes of law. In such a situation, if he dies in an accident, the family should be given separate compensation.

The verdict was delivered in a case involving a railway accident in which both a pregnant woman and her unborn child died. Earlier the Railway Claims Tribunal had awarded compensation only for the death of the woman and refused to consider the fetus as a separate person.

Overturning this decision, the Lucknow Bench clarified that after a certain stage of development the fetus acquires the status of independent life, hence its death cannot be ignored.

Actually, the matter is related to the incident of 2 September 2018, when 8-9 months pregnant Bhanmati had fallen while boarding the train. She was seriously injured in this accident and later both the woman and her unborn child died during treatment.

Earlier, the tribunal had awarded compensation of Rs 8 lakh for the woman’s death under provisions related to untoward railway incidents, but had refused to give separate compensation for the unborn child. The victim’s family had filed an appeal against this in the High Court.

Hearing the case, Justice Prashant Kumar said that if the fetus is more than 5 months old, it will be considered a legal person. Therefore his death in an accident should also be treated at par with the death of a child for the purpose of compensation.

The court also clarified that under the Railways Act, it is the responsibility of the authorities to pay compensation for all types of casualties caused by accidents, including the death of an unborn child.

The court ultimately directed the Railway Claims Tribunal to provide separate compensation to the family for the death of the fetus as well. This decision is being considered an important precedent from the legal point of view, which can become a guide in future cases.

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