CHANDRAKALI Vs. ORIENTAL INSURANCE COMPANY LTD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PRESENT writ petition has been filed by the petitioner for quashing the order dated 24.02.2010 passed by the learned Additional District Judge/ FTC IV, Dehradun in MACP No.150 of 2008, `Smt. Chandrakali @ Mona Vs. The Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. and others'. The petitioner has further sought a writ of mandamus directing the learned Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Dehradun to permit the petitioner to withdraw the money deposited in F.D.R. for a period of three years.

(2.) BRIEF facts of the case, as narrated in the writ petition, are that the petitioner/claimant filed a Motor Accident Claims Petition no.150 of 2008, `Smt. Chandrakali @ Mona Vs. The Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. and others', before Motor Accident Claims Tribunal/ District Judge, Dehradun, for the award of compensation of Rs 10,20,000/- against the defendants/ respondents on account of death of her son Vinod Kumar in a motor accident which took place at about 8.30 a.m. on 11.06.2008 near Truck Union Office, Selakui. On that day the deceased was going to Selakui Factory from his village by Vikram Regn. No.U.P. 07 F/4971. At about 8.30 a.m. the driver of the Vikram stopped his vehicle on the left side of road near Truck Union Office. Then a JCB Regn. No. HR 30 F/0270, whose driver was running the vehicle in rash and negligent manner, with high and excessive speed, dashed to the parked Vikram, in which the deceased was travelling. The deceased was taken to Govt. Hospital Sahaspur, where the doctors declared him as dead. The aforesaid claim petition was pending in the Court of FTC IInd, Dehradun and the learned Presiding Officer was not available for a long time. So the matter could not be disposed of. As the petitioner was in urgent need of money, so the matter was compromised in Lok Adalat for a mere sum of Rs 3,00,000/-. It is stated in the petition that on 09.11.2009, the learned District Judge, as per the compromise, partly allowed the claim petition filed on behalf of claimant/petitioner and awarded the compensation to the tune of Rs 3,00,000/- in favour of claimant/ petitioner against the defendant/respondent no.1 i.e. Insurance Company of the offending vehicle along with 7.5% per annum interest on the amount of compensation from the date of filing of the claim petition before the Claim Tribunal. The learned District Judge further directed to invest Rs. 1,50,000/- in FDR in favour of the petitioner for a period of 3 years in Punjab National Bank and remaining amount was directed to be paid in cash to the petitioner.

(3.) PLACING reliance on the judgment rendered by the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of H.S. Ahammed Hussain & another Vs. Irfan Ahammed & another reported in II (2002) ACC 575 (SC), the learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the learned Tribunal should have allowed the application filed by petitioner for withdrawing the sum invested in the form of F.D.R. Learned counsel for the petitioner further placed reliance in the judgment of this Court in the case of Roshan Lal Vs. Motor Accident Claims Tribunal & others reported in 2004(1)UD-655.