1 CGHC010313922026 2026:CGHC:38011 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR WPC No. 4391 of 2026 1 - Smt. Yogeshwari Pradhan W/o Late Kiran Kumar Pradhan, Aged About 30 Years Caste Suryavanshi, -R/o Hanumanta, Post Jharna, Tahsil Saragaon, District Janjgir Champa C. G. ... Petitioner versus 1 - State of Chhattisgarh Through- Secretary Department of Management And Disaster Mahanadi Bhawan Atal Nagar Naya Raipur, District Raipur C. G. 2 - Collector Janjgir Champa, District Janjgir Champa, C. G. 3 - Assistant Commissioner, Tribal Development Department Janjgir District Janjgir Champa C. G. 4 - Sub Superintendent Of Police A J A K Janjgir Champa, C. G. ... Respondents (Cause title is downloaded from CIS Periphery.) For Petitioner : Mr. Chandrasen Chouhan, Advocate. For State : Dr. Arham Siddiqui, P.L. SB-Hon’ble Shri Justice Amitendra Kishore Prasad Order on Board 25.08.2026 RAVVA UTTEJ KUMAR RAJU Digitally signed by RAVVA UTTEJ KUMAR RAJU Date: 2026.08.25 16:12:17 +0530 2 1. By way of the present writ petition, the petitioner seeks a direction to the respondent authorities to grant compensation on account of the death of her husband, namely Kiran Kumar Pradhan, in accordance with the provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, the Rules framed thereunder, and the applicable Government circulars/guidelines, arising out of the alleged murder of her husband by the accused persons. 2. Following reliefs have been prayed in this petition:- “(i) That, this Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to direct the respondent authorities consider the representation and to pay compensation amount of Rs. 8,25,000/- on account of death of the deceased as per circular of the Government, within stipulated time, in the interest of justice. (ii) Any other relief which may be suitable in the facts and circumstances of the case, may also be granted, in the interest of justice.” 3. Learned counsel appearing for the petitioner submits that the husband of the petitioner, namely Kiran Kumar Pradhan, was murdered by Raja Yadav @ Rajvir, Rakesh Kumar Rohidas and Karan Suryavanshi and, therefore, the petitioner, being a member of the Scheduled Caste and dependent family member of the deceased, is entitled to compensation in terms of the provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, the Rules framed thereunder and the applicable Government circular/guidelines. It is submitted that as 3 per the notification dated 14.04.2016, particularly Clause 45, the petitioner is entitled to compensation of Rs.8,25,000/- on account of the death of the deceased. He further submits that the petitioner had approached the learned Collector, Janjgir-Champa, seeking payment of the aforesaid compensation, pursuant to which the Assistant Commissioner, Tribal Development, Janjgir- Champa, also addressed a communication to the Additional Superintendent of Police regarding payment of compensation in accordance with the amended Rules of 2016; however, despite the same, the claim of the petitioner has neither been considered nor the admissible compensation has been released till date without assigning any justifiable reason. It is further submitted that the deceased was the sole earning member of the family and, after his death, the petitioner and other family members, who were dependent upon his income, are facing serious financial hardship and difficulty in maintaining their livelihood. He next submits that the petitioner belongs to a poor Scheduled Caste family and has no other source of income and, therefore, denial or withholding of the statutory compensation is arbitrary, unjustified and contrary to the applicable provisions, rules and Government guidelines. It is also submitted that in similar circumstances, this Court has already passed an order dated 14.05.2026 in W.P.(C) No.2456/2026, and therefore, the respondents may be directed to consider the petitioner's claim and release the compensation amount of Rs.8,25,000/- in accordance with law. 4 4. Learned State counsel, appearing for the respondents, submits that the claim of the petitioner may be considered by the competent authority in accordance with law and the applicable provisions, Rules and Government guidelines. It is further submitted that, if this Court considers it appropriate, a direction may be issued to the competent authority to consider and decide the petitioner's representation within a stipulated period, without expressing any opinion on the merits of the claim. 5. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the material available on record. 6. Considering the facts and circumstances of the case and particularly the limited prayer made by learned counsel for the petitioner, without commenting upon the merits or entitlement of the petitioner, this Court deems it appropriate to dispose of the present writ petition with a direction to the competent authority to consider and decide the pending representation/claim of the petitioner seeking grant of compensation under the provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and the Rules framed thereunder, as well as the applicable Government circulars/guidelines, after duly verifying the claim of the petitioner from the relevant records and documents and thereafter pass an appropriate, reasoned and speaking order in accordance with law, expeditiously, preferably within a period of 120 days from the date of receipt of a certified copy of this order. 5 7. It is made clear that this Court has not expressed any opinion on the merits of the petitioner's claim or his entitlement to the compensation claimed. 8. With the aforesaid direction, the instant writ petition stands disposed of. Sd/- (Amitendra Kishore Prasad) Judge U.K. Raju