In Brief
The Supreme Court dismissed an appeal against a High Court decision that enhanced employee compensation under the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923 from Rs 4,33,060 to Rs 8,86,120. The central legal issue concerned whether the 2009 amendment deleting the Rs 4,000 monthly wage cap applied retrospectively to an accident occurring in 2008. The Court clarified that the compensation date is fixed as the date of the accident, not the date of final adjudication. Therefore, the 2009 amendment does not apply retrospectively. However, exercising inherent constitutional jurisdiction to do complete justice, and noting that 12 years had elapsed with the employer's actual wages now proven and the respondent not appealing, the Court upheld the enhanced award."
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