(1.) The appellant, who is the original respondent No.4, has challenged the judgment and award dtd. 9/9/2005 passed by the learned Member, Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Ahmednagar (hereinafter referred to as "the learned Tribunal), in Motor Accident Claim Petition No. 653/1994.
(2.) The background facts are as under : One deceased Bhagchand, who is the husband of respondent No.1 herein, alongwith his other relatives was travelling in a jeep bearing registration No. MH-16-7700 on 5/2/1994 from Belbandi to Dhawalgaon. As the jeep approached village Dhawalgaon, driver of the jeep dashed to one tractor coming from the opposite side and in the said accident Bhagchand sustained severe injuries and died on the spot. Accordingly, the original claimants, who are the present respondent Nos.1 and 2, had fled claim petition for getting compensation under Sec. 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act. The learned Tribunal, after conducting the trial, awarded compensation to the claimants to the to the tune of Rs.1,15,000.00 (inclusive of the amount under Sec. 140 of the M.V. Act regarding the principal of "no fault liability ") alongwith interest at the rate of 9% per annum from the date of petition till it 's realization. The learned Tribunal, however, exonerated the present respondent No. 6 - Insurance Company and only fxed the liability of paying compensation on the present appellant and respondent No.4 Nana Harde being owners of the jeep and tractor respectively, which were involved in the accident, to the extent of 50% each. Feeling aggrieved with the said judgment and award, the appellant, who is owner of the jeep, is before this Court.
(3.) Learned Counsel for the appellant submits that the appeal is fled only on two grounds i.e. the jeep driver was not at all negligent while driving the jeep at the time of accident and that the learned Tribunal wrongly inferred that the jeep was not covered under the insurance policy issued by present respondent No.6 at the time of accident. He further submits that the appellant had, in fact, given a demand draft of the premium in respect of the insurance of jeep to the concerned Insurance Company on the day of the accident itself in the morning, but as the offce of the Insurance Company was closed on account of holidays falling on Saturday and Sunday, he had sent the demand draft on the same day i.e. on 5/2/1994 under Certifcate of Posting to respondent No.6-Insurance Company, and therefore, as per Sec. 64VB of the Insurance Act, the vehicle i.e. the jeep was covered under the policy issued by respondent No.6 - Insurance Company. Learned Counsel for the appellant also relied on the judgment of this Court in the case of Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. Mumbai vs Sadhana Devidas Gujrathi and others reported in 2021 (5) Mh.L.J. 535.