NATIONAL INSURANCE CO LTD Vs. SATTO DEVI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE are two appeals which have been filed by the Insurance Company. The Award is dated 01.5.2010; three persons had died in an accident which had occurred on 26.2.2006 at about 1.30 PM; the appeal has been filed qua the amount awarded in favour of the legal representative of the Pushpender Pal Singh and Madhu; the victims along with Vipin Jain were travelling in a TATA Indica car when the car fell into the river `Vyas' pursuant to which all the occupants of the car had died. The claimants were the parents of the deceased Pushpender Pal Singh and the in-laws of the deceased Madhu. Compensation in the sum of Rs.18,72,264/- had been awarded in favour of the claimants qua the death of Pushpender Pal Singh; compensation in the sum of Rs.6,58,000/- had been awarded to the legal representatives of the deceased Madhu. Interest had been awarded @ 8% per annum.

(2.) THE Award has been challenged by the learned counsel for the Insurance Company for the amount awarded to the legal representatives of both the husband and wife namely Pushpender Pal Singh and Madhu. Contention regarding the claim of the husband is that the multiplier adopted by the Tribunal is wrong. THE age of the claimant or the age of the deceased whichever is higher has to be taken into account. In this case record clearly shows that the age of the claimant was 54 years and this was the factor which had to be borne in mind while applying the multiplier but the Tribunal has applied the multiplier of 18 by keeping in view the age of the victim i.e. of Pushpender Pal Singh who was aged 23 years. THE same argument has also been advanced to qua the claim awarded in favour of legal representative of deceased Madhu; it is pointed out that the father in law of Madhu was aged about 54 years; the multiplier of 11 should have been adopted keeping in view the higher age of the claimant and not the age of the victim.

(3.) KEEPING in view the aforenoted scenario the modified award in the case of husband Pushpender Pal Singh will accordingly read as under: