Gagan and Others vs Manoj and Others

N.K. Patil, J.—These two appeals respectively by the driver and owner of the offending Mahindra Jeep bearing Registration No. KA-12/N-3635 and the claimants of deceased T.M. Asha, are directed against the same judgment and award dated 7th March 2015, passed in M.V.C. No. 203/2013, by the Principal Judge, Court of Small Causes, Mysuru, in concurrent charge of Additional Court of Small Causes, Mysuru, as a Presiding Officer, Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Mysuru.

While the driver and owner of the offending Mahindra Jeep have filed M.F.A. No. 4313/2015, seeking to set aside the direction issued by the Tribunal to indemnify the entire award; the claimants of deceased T.M. Asha, have filed M.F.ANo.6573/2015, seeking enhancement of compensation on the ground that the compensation awarded by Tribunal at Rs. 24,87,650/- on account of the death of deceased T.M. Asha, in the road traffic accident is on the lower side.

On account of the untimely and unnatural death of the deceased T.M. Asha, the claimants, who are none other than the husband and minor children of the deceased filed a claim petition in M.V.C. No. 203/2013 before the jurisdictional Tribunal. The said claim petition had come up for consideration before the Tribunal on 7th March, 2015. The Tribunal, after considering the relevant material available on file and after appreciation of the oral and documentary evidence, allowed the claim petition in part, awarding a sum of Rs. 24,87,650/- with 9% interest per annum from the date of petition till the date of realization on account of the death of deceased and directing the driver and owner of the offending Mahindra Jeep to indemnify the entire award and dismissed the claim petition as against the Insurer/Bajaj Allianz GIC limited. Being aggrieved by the impugned judgment and award passed by the Tribunal, directing the driver and owner of the offending Mahindra Jeep to indemnify the entire award, the driver and owner have filed M.F.A. No. 4313/2015 to set aside the said direction and being dissatisfied with the quantum of compensation awarded by the Tribunal, the claimants of deceased T.M. Asha have filed M.F.A. No. 6573/2015, seeking enhancement of compensation.

We have gone through the grounds urged in the memorandum of appeal filed by driver and owner of offending Mahindra Jeep in M.F.A. No. 4313/2015 and the appeal filed by the claimants in M.F.A. No. 6573/2015 and heard the learned counsel appearing for driver and owner, claimants and also learned counsel appearing for third respondent/Insurer, i.e. Bajaj Allianz GIC Limited, for considerable length of time.

Shri. O. Mahesh, learned counsel appearing for Insurer, i.e. Bajaj allianz GID Limited, at the outset submitted that, there is an injury case filed by the injured claimant on the file of the MACT, Virajpet, arising out of the same accident and the issues involved in these cases and the issues involved in the said injury case pending before the MACT, Virajpet are one and the same. Therefore, he fairly submitted that, in the interest of justice and equity and to have uniformity and consistency and also to safeguard the interest of the parties, the impugned judgment and award passed by Tribunal may be set aside and the matter may be remanded to the MACT, Virajpet, where another MVC, arising of the same accident, pertaining to injured claimant is pending consideration, to enable the MACT, Virajpet to decide the matter on merits, after clubbing both the matters and after affording reasonable opportunity of hearing to all the parties concerned and all the contentions of all the parties be left open.

In reply, Shri. V. Srinivas, learned counsel appearing for driver and owner of offending Mahindra Jeep and Shri. H.T. Girish, learned counsel appearing for claimants fairly submitted that the submission made by the learned counsel appearing for the Insurer/Bajaj Allianz GIC Limited, may be placed on record and the impugned judgment and award passed by Tribunal may be set aside and the matter may be remanded to the MACT, Virajpet, where the injury case in M.V.C. No. 78/2013, arising out of the same accident is pending adjudication, and all the contentions urged by all the parties may be left open.

Further, learned counsel appearing for driver and owner of the offending vehicle submitted that pursuant to the interim order granted by this Court on 11th June 2015, they have deposited 50% of the award amount with accrued interest before the Additional Judge, Small Causes and Senior Civil Judge, Mysuru. Now, since the matter is being remanded to the MACT, Virajpet, the said amount deposited before the MACT, Mysuru and also the statutory amount deposited at the time of filing the appeal before the Registry of this Court, may be directed to be transmitted to the MACT, Virajpet, with a direction to it to invest the same in any Nationalized/Scheduled Bank, until final judgment is passed by the MACT, Virajpet, after remand and after clubbing both the cases.

The said submission of the learned counsel appearing for all the parties are placed on record.

After hearing the learned counsel appearing for all the parties, i.e. driver and owner of offending Mahindra Jeep, claimants and Bajaj Allianz GIC Limited, and after perusal of the impugned judgment and award passed by Tribunal, it is not in dispute that the injured claimant in the very same accident that occurred at about 5:30 P.M., on 22-12-2012, has also filed a claim petition on the file of the MACT, Virajpet in M.V.C. No. 78/2013 and the same is pending consideration. The Legal Representatives of the deceased, on account of the death of the deceased T.M. Asha have filed claim petition before the MACT, Mysuru, arising out of the same accident that occurred at about 5:30 P.M., on 22-12-2012 in M.V.C. No. 203/2013, which means, two claim petitions arising out of the same accident are filed, one before the MACT, Virajpet, in M.V.C. No. 78/2013 and another before the MACT, Mysuru, in M.V.C. No. 203/2013. Now, the present appeals are filed by the driver and owner of the offending Jeep and also the claimants, against the judgment and award passed by the MACT, Mysuru in M.V.C. No. 203/2013, challenging liability and also quantum of compensation.

Therefore, as rightly pointed out by the learned counsel appearing for all the parties, in order to have consistency and uniformity in the matter, to safeguard the interest of all the parties and to meet the ends of justice, without expressing any opinion on the merits or demerits of the case, it would suffice for this Court if we set aside the impugned judgment and award passed by MACT, Mysuru and remand the matter to MACT, Virajpet, where the other MVC pertaining to injured claimant, arising out of the same accident, is pending consideration, to enable the MACT, Virajpet to club the same by giving fresh number and decide the same, after affording reasonable opportunity of hearing to all the parties concerned, and independently, without being influenced by the judgment and award passed by MACT, Mysuru.

In the light of the discussion made above and in the light of the submission of the learned counsel appearing for all the parties and the facts and circumstances of the case, the appeal filed by driver and owner in M.F.A. No. 4313/2015 and the appeal filed by claimants in M.F.A. No. 6573/2015 are allowed.

"The impugned judgment and award dated 7th March 2015, passed in MVC No. 203/2013, by the Principal Judge, Court of Small Causes, Mysuru, in concurrent charge of Additional Court of Small Causes, Mysuru, as a Presiding Officer, Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Mysuru, is hereby set aside;

The matter stands remanded to the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Virajpet, where the case filed by the injured claimant, in M.V.C. No. 78/2013, arising out of the same accident is pending adjudication, for consideration of the matter afresh and to pass appropriate order, in accordance with law, after affording reasonable opportunity of hearing to all the parties, personally or through their counsel and dispose of the same, as expeditiously as possible, at any rate, not later than six months from the date of appearance of the parties.

The MACT, Virajpet, is hereby directed to assign new number to M.V.C. No. 203/2013 and club the same along with M.V.C. No. 78/2013, stated to have been filed by the injured claimant, arising out of the same accident and decide the same, by passing a common judgment, independently, without being influenced by the judgment and award passed by MACT, Mysuru in M.V.C. No. 203/2013;

Further, the MACT, Mysuru, is directed to transmit the amount deposited by the appellants in M.F.A. No. 4313/2015, i.e. driver and owner of Mahindra Jeep in M.V.C. No. 203/2013 to the MACT, Virajpet, immediately after receipt of a copy of this judgment;

Registry is directed to transmit the statutory amount deposited by the appellants in M.F.A. No. 4313/2015 (M.V.C. No. 203/2013) to the MACT, Virajpet, immediately;

On such transfer of the aforesaid amounts before the MACT, Virajpet, the MACT, Virajpet, is directed to invest the same in any nationalized or scheduled Bank, until a final judgment is passed by it, after remand and after clubbing the present M.V.C. No. 203/2013 with M.V.C. No. 78/2013, filed by the injured claimant, arising out of the same accident;

All the contentions of all the parties are left open;

Without waiting for any notice, the claimants, i.e. LRs. of deceased T.M. Asha, driver and owner of Mahindra Jeep bearing Registration No. KA-12/N-3635 and also Insurer, i.e. Bajaj Allianz GIC Limited are directed to appear before the MACT, Virajpet on 28-12-2015, at 11:00 A.M., personally, or through their counsel to collect further dates of hearing;

All the parties are permitted to file necessary application/s, for adducing additional evidence, oral/documentary, to substantiate their respective cases within four weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment;

In case such application/s is/are filed by the learned counsel for the parties, within the time stipulated above, the MACT, Virajpet is directed to receive the same and proceed further and dispose of the same as expeditiously as possible, in compliance of the directions issued by this Court, as above;

Registry is directed to return the entire original records, received from the MACT, Mysuru to the MACT, Virajpet, immediately, with an intimation of such return to the MACT, Mysuru;

Registry is directed to send a copy of this judgment to the MACT, Virajpet, Mysuru, immediately, to enable it to comply with the above directions issued by this Court."