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Judgment
Since all these three appeals titled above have arisen out of the same accident hence, are being taken up together by this common judgment.
Accident occurred on 09.12.2012 at 07:00 PM in the outskirts vicinity of Khatima District Udham Singh Nagar when motorcycle borne a youth Shri Sukhchain Singh, aged about 36 years, driving the byke with pillion rider Shri Harjit Singh, was dashed by the scorpio no. HR66A-6666. The motorcycle borne youths both were severely injured and as a result thereof they were shifted from one hospital to other and ultimately Shri Sukhchain succumbed to such injuries, when he was being shifted from Haldwani to Sai Hospital, Khatima.
The FIR no. 276 was lodged on 28.12.2012 for the offence of section 279, 338 & 304-A in police station Khatima by the father of Shri Harjit Singh. The court is not aware about the fate of such FIR or trial (if any) against the scorpio driver. However, the dependents of Shri Sukhchain Singh presented the MACT 97/2013 claiming the compensation to the tune of Rs. 20,00,000/- (Rupees twenty lakhs only) whereagainst the learned Tribunal has granted Rs. 5,11,446/- along with 7.5% interest thereon vide impugned judgment dated 30.9.2014. Such award has been challenged by the insurer of scorpio by way of appeal no. 38/2015.
Mr. Harjit Singh himself presented the MACT No. 162/2013 claiming the compensation to the tune of Rs. 5,00,000/- whereagainst the Tribunal has awarded Rs. 2,68,423/- vide another impugned judgment dated 30.9.2014. This award has been challenged by the insurer by way of filing the AO No. 36/2015.
The dependants of Shri Sukhchain Singh viz. the wife Smt. Navjeet Kaur, the minor Master Gurpreet Singh (aged about 3 years), the mother Smt. Charan Kaur (aged
about 64 years) and sister Rajwant Kaur (aged about 31 years) now have presented the AO No. 483/2015 for enhancement of the compensation. None has turned up on behalf of the owner and driver of the scorpio car (notwithstanding the vakalatnama of Tumuk K. Nailwal placed on the record).
The court has rendered hearing to the learned counsel of the insurer as well as claimants. The learned counsel of the appellant-insurer has questioned the award calling the attention of this court towards the paragraph-14 of the judgment where PW2 Shri Harjit Singh in MACT 97/2013 has stated that this accident occurred between the two vehicles from front so the liability should be apportioned to the Insurance Company of the motorcycle as well.
The court is not inclined to accept such argument because in the just next sentence PW2 Shri Harjit Singh has made it amply clear that they were towards their left side while the jeep driver swerved to the right side and dashed their motorcycle. So, I think no question of apportionment of the liability arises in the present controversy.
On the other hand, the dependants of Shri Sukhchain Singh have presented the appeal for enhancement. I find no cogent reason to enhance the quantum because Shri Sukhchain Singh was not even in a temporary job of Uttarakhand Transport Corporation. Though, he was a driver, used to ply the Uttarakhand Transport Corporation bus, but was called by the employer not daily. His services were on the need basis. So, his salary for whole of the year has rightly been calculated on
the information available on the record to the tune of Rs. 5,393/- per month. The compensation has appropriately been awarded along with 7.5% interest. The rate of interest is not inclined to mitigate.
The quantum of compensation to Shri Harjit Singh has also been challenged on the same ground that the insurer of the motorcycle has not been impleaded as a party while his impleadment was necessary.
I think in view of the statement of Shri Harjit Singh in MACT 97/2013 as has already been aforementioned, the motorcyclist were not at fault. So, the award of this much compensation looking to the period of hospitalization, which was nearly one month as well as the medical bills, the compensation is not in the higher side because the medical bills by themselves are to the tune of Rs. 2,53,423/- and the learned Tribunal has awarded Rs. 15,000/- more in other various heads. So, this way the compensation to the tune of Rs. 2,68,423/- along with 7.5% is not in the higher side.
In view of what has been set forth above, all these three appeals have no force and are thus dismissed.
The amount deposited by the Insurance Company shall be remitted back to the Tribunal for disbursement to the claimants and rest of the amount shall be paid by the Insurance Company within six weeks.
LCR be sent back.