MOORTHI DEVI Vs. PAWAN KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellants in this appeal seek to assail the judgment and award of the learned Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal dated 19th August, 1999 passed in Suit No.236/1998, whereby a sum of Rs.2,43,184.00 was awarded in favour of the appellants alongwith interest thereon at the rate of 9% per annum from the date of the filing of the petition, that is, 15.01.1990 till realisation.

(2.) THE facts briefly delineated are that on 15.12.1989 at about 6.00 p.m., the deceased Dharambir Singh was going on foot and when he reached at Wazirabad Road, near Khajuri Chowk, Delhi, he was hit by truck No.DIL-4847, which was being driven rashly and negligently and at a high speed by its driver Pawan Kumar. As a result of the forceful impact, the deceased fell down on the road and sustained injuries, which resulted in his death at the spot. A Claim Petition under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 was filed by the appellants on 15.01.1990 claiming compensation in the sum of Rs.5 lakhs against the driver, the owner and the insurer of the offending truck, which culminated in the passing of the impugned award on 19.08.1999. Aggrieved therefrom, the present appeal has been preferred by the appellants, wherein the manner of computation of the award amount has been faulted as also the fact that the learned Tribunal exonerated the Insurance Company and held that it was not liable to pay any compensation to the appellants.

(3.) IT is in the aforesaid circumstances that the matter has been heard again by this Court and Mr. O.P. Mannie, the learned counsel for the appellants and Ms. Manjusha Wadhwa, the learned counsel for the Insurance Company, have addressed arguments. The learned counsel for the appellants has challenged the judgment of the learned Tribunal while the learned counsel for the Insurance Company has assailed the findings rendered by this Court in the absence of the counsel for the Insurance Company.