NEW INDIA ASSURANCE COMPANY LTD Vs. RAGHURAMI REDDY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The claimant, who is the driver of the lorry bearing No.ATS 1926 met with an accident on 29-5-1988 and sustained injuries. According to the petitioner/ the tourist bus bearing No.ADQ 8191 came opposite to his vehicle driven in a rash and negligent manner without blowing horn at about 12-00 mid-night and hit on the front side of his lorry resulting in the accident. The petitioner-claimant has filed O.P.No.228 of 1988 on the file of the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Tirupathi, claiming a total compensation of Rs.3,42,500/-. After considering the entire evidence, both oral and documentary, adduced by both the parties, and taking into account the nature of injuries sustained by the petitioner, the lower tribunal awarded a total compensation of Rs.1,98,130/- against all the respondents including both the insurance companies, i.e., New India Assurance Company (respondent No.2) with which the Tourist Bus ADQ 8191 was insured and United India Insurance Company Limited (respondent No.4) with which the lorry ATS 1926 was registered. Having been aggrieved by the award of compensation, both the insurance companies have preferred separate appeals, viz., New India Assurance Company has preferred C.M.A. No. 1313 of 1990 while the United India Insurance Company has preferred C.M.A. No. 1401 of 1990.

(2.) As both the C.M. As. arise out of one and the same judgment of the lower Tribunal, both the C.M.As. are clubbed together and are being disposed of by a common judgment.

(3.) It is contended by Sri Kota Subba Rao, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the appellant-New India Insurance Company that under Section 95(2)(b)(i) of the Motor Vehicles Act the appellant-New India Insurance Company is liable only to the extent of Rs.50,000/- but the lower Tribunal has wrongly taken the new Act into consideration which came into force subsequent to the accident. In support of his contentionhehas relied upon the following decisions reported in United India Insurance Company Ltd. vs. Alapati Venkata Subba Rao and National Insurance Company Ltd. vs. Jugal Kishore. In this connection it is necessary to extract Section 95(2)(b)(i) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939, which is in the following terms: