SREERANGAN Vs. THE NEW INDIA ASSURANCE CO. LTD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is one of the claimants in O.P. (MV). No. 1213 of 2005, before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal (M.A.C.T.), Palakkad. The claim was filed for compensation with respect to the death of the petitioner's son in a motor accident, wherein the petitioner's son, who was riding a bicycle, was hit by a jeep and was run over by a lorry coming from the opposite side. The respondents 1 and 2 are the insurers of the vehicles, who were mulcted with equal liability as per Exhibit P1 award, arrived at on settlement. The wife of the petitioner and two other sons were the other claimants before the Tribunal. The Tribunal rightly declined the claim of the two other sons and the amount of Rupees Three lakhs arrived at, on settlement, was equally apportioned between 1st and 2nd claimants, being the petitioner herein and his wife. Rupees One lakh each was directed to be paid to the father and mother of the deceased and the balance was directed to be deposited in Fixed Deposit, equally in their respective names.

(2.) The controversy arose when Exhibit P2 application was filed before the Tribunal seeking disbursement of the amount deposited, which was subsequently converted as Fixed Deposit Receipt. The application filed as I.A. No. 232 of 2011 was rejected by Exhibit P3 on the ground that no legal heirship certificate was produced.

(3.) This Court called for a report from the Tribunal and the Tribunal has reported that the award specifically directed production of legal heirship certificate and, hence, Exhibit P3 dismissal was made. The report goes one step ahead and explains the dismissal further on the premise that there was no averment in the affidavit filed along with the application that the petitioner was a legal representative of the deceased and that he would not be shown as a legal heir of the deceased, since the mother of the deceased, the Class I heir, is alive.