BHARTI AXA GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY Vs. SOMA DEVI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The claim petition being claim petition preferred under Sec. 163A of the Motor Vehicle Act stood instituted before the court of learned Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Pauri Garhwal, on 6/7/2010, praying for the grant of an appropriate compensation on account of the sad demise of Mr. Rupan S/o Shri Chunni Lal, who is said to have met with an accident on 31/5/2010, at 14:55. It was contended in the claim petition that the deceased at the time of accident was 54 years of age, and at the relevant point of time, he was working as a 'Safai Sevak' at Additional Primary Health Centre, Pokhal, District Pauri Garhwal. The claimants have came up with the case that since on the date of the accident, the deceased was having an income of Rs.12,000.00 per month. Accordingly, they have prayed for that the compensation may be determined and paid to them to the tune of Rs.23,00,000.00.

(2.) The claim petition, thus, instituted on 6/7/2010, was opposed by the opposite party nos.1 and 2, therein, i.e. owner of the vehicle and the driver, as well as, the present appellant, who were later on impleaded by an amendment of 13/10/2010, denying the claim as it was raised under Sec. 163A of the Motor Vehicle Act, and with regards to the adequacy of the same, as it was claimed by the claimants in the claim petition, which was registered as MACT No.33 of 2010, 'Smt. Soma Devi and others Vs. Harimohan Singh Rawat and others'.

(3.) The appellants, herein, had contested the proceedings by filing a written statement, after they were impleaded as party to the proceedings on 18/2/2011, denying the contention of the claim petition, and particularly, they have taken a specific plea in paragraph 1, that since the claim petition itself has been preferred under Sec. 163A of the Motor Vehicle Act, the parameters prescribed for its determination has had to be confined on the basis of the annual income, which was accrued to the deceased, which will be less than Rs.40,000.00 as contemplated under the said provisions. The provisions as contained under Sec. 163A of Motor Vehicle Act, is extracted as under:-