JOAO CABRAL Vs. MIRA NAMDEV NAIK

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant was riding his motor cycle No. GDD 4073 on July 13, 1989, at about 9 p. m. near the bus stand of Vasco-da-Gama. While he was so riding, he knocked down the deceased, namdev Naik, the husband of respondent No. 1 and father of the other respondents. The said deceased, Namdev, died in consequence of the injuries sustained by him in the accident. The respondents preferred their claims before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, South Goa, margao. In fact, they made two applications, one under section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act and the other under section 140 of the Act for compensation of Rs. 25,000 on no fault claim basis.

(2.) THE petitioner contended that his motor cycle had not at all touched the deceased. According to him, he was driving the motor cycle in the semi-circle at the traffic junction in front of the court building of Vasco-da-Gama. He met some of his friends, he spoke to them for a while and, thereafter, went, towards the east. He saw the deceased running after the 9 o'clock bus proceeding to Panaji that had already crossed the junction. On seeing the deceased running, he slowed down his vehicle. Within a few second, he saw that the deceased had fallen on the road and in order to prevent running over the deceased, he applied brakes, as a result of which the vehicle skidded and he fell down with his vehicle over him at a distance of about 6 metres away from the place where the deceased had fallen. The vehicle was not insured. The learned judge adopted the procedure as contemplated under rule 18 as amended and, by relying on certain documents, made an award in the sum of Rs. 25,000. Since the regular application under section 166 of the Act was pending, he directed that the respondents shall execute a bond undertaking to return to the petitioner the amount of compensation paid to them if, at the end of the trial of the main application, it was found that the motor cycle was not involved in the accident at all.

(3.) IN support of the order, the learned judge has relied on the post-mortem report as also the panchanama of the scene of accident and, on this basis, he has made the said award.