My win over Karpal Singh

This is about the time I won a case against the now legendary lawyer, Karpal Singh.

A workman filed a claim for workmen’s compensation for injuries sustained at work, under the Workmen’s Compensation Act, which was the forerunner of our current SOCSO laws. The employer, an Indian Contractor, engaged Karpal Singh to represent him. I was appointed as a Workmen’s Compensation Commissioner by my cheeky boss, who wondered how I would extricate myself out of this scene.

As a Workmen’s Compensation Commissioner, I had the powers to represent workers in the High Court. On the date of the hearing, both Karpal and I were in the judge's chambers, to present our cases. I told the judge the accident happened in the course and out of his employment and fell within the meaning of "accident" in the Act. Karpal understandably was not familiar with the Workmen’s Compensation Act and argued that his client conceded that the accident occurred in the course of his employment, but argued that it did not arise out of his employment. I drew the attention of the judge to the relevant section of the Act which clearly said that any accident arising in the course of employment, is deemed to arise out of his employment.

Happily, the judge found for the workman and ordered damages.

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