Bhubaneswar: A petition was filed with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Monday seeking justice for an elderly couple of Kanas in Puri who was electrocuted Sunday.
Taking note of a report published in Odia daily ‘Dharitri’, rights activist Himansu Sekhar Nayak, in his petition, has informed the apex rights body that the elderly couple — Gokula Sethy (65) and Nisamani Sethy (60) — was electrocuted Sunday morning due to the alleged negligence of the electricity supplying company as it failed miserably to ensure timely repairs and restoration of dangling live wires ever since Fani wreaked havoc in the locality.
According to the petition, the incident took place around 6.30am when Nishamani had gone to pick flowers from their garden. “She came in contact with a live wire dangling in their garden. Hearing her screams, Gokula rushed to her rescue and was, too, electrocuted,” the petition reads.
Family members rushed the duo to Kanas community health centre and later to Capital Hospital in Bhubaneswar where the couple was declared brought dead, sources said.
Blaming the callousness of the electricity supplying agency’s alleged failure to repair the live dangling wire which claimed two innocent lives, the petitioner urged the commission to direct the Chief Secretary to pay a compensation of Rs 25 lakh to the next of kin of the victims and other benefits at the earliest. The petitioner requested submission of proof of compensation disbursal with NHRC before the next hearing.
This apart, Nayak also requested the apex rights body to direct the Energy department for initiating an investigation into the alleged negligence of duty caused by the erring officials of the Energy department. The petitioner also urged a directive to the authorities for submitting an Action Taken Report with NHRC within five weeks.