JOJU @ JOJI Vs. SREEKUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant is the injured in a motor accident caused by the negligent driving of a vehicle driven by the 1st respondent, owned by the 3rd respondent and insured with the 2nd respondent (respondents 1 and 3 have subsequently been deleted from the party array). Claiming compensation for the injuries and consequent disabilities sustained by the appellant on account of the accident, he filed O.P.(MV) No. 1358 of 1998 before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Irinjalakkuda. After finding negligence on the part of the driver of the offending vehicle, the Tribunal awarded compensation under various heads as follows:

(2.) ON the other hand, learned Counsel for the Insurance Company would contend that in the absence of any reliable evidence adduced by the appellant, except his own interested version, the Tribunal was right in fixing Rs. 1,500 as the notional income. He also supports the assessment of compensation under various heads. He would submit that insofar as the disability certificate is not by a medical board and the doctor who issued the disability certificate is only a Neuro Surgeon, he could not have assessed the disability of the appellant in respect of all the faculties of the appellant. Therefore, the Tribunal has fixed the percentage of disability as 5% after seeing the appellant, which cannot be faulted, is the contention of the Counsel for the Insurance Company.