GAFARAN Vs. TILAKRAJ KAPUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) For the death of a 23 years old unmarried person, employed in the Government service on a salary of Rs. 1,500 per month, who died in a motor accident and the vehicle was insured with respondent No. 3, the Tribunal below has awarded compensation of Rs. 62,000 to the two sisters (appellant Nos. 4 and 5) of the deceased. Two other sisters, namely, appellant Nos. 2 and 3 were not awarded any compensation on the ground that they were not dependent on the deceased.

(2.) Counsel for the appellants submitted that the amount awarded is too meagre to be sustained by this court. As against this Mr. B.N. Malhotra strongly defended the impugned award.

(3.) It is not disputed before us that the deceased was unmarried and his parents had also died and so only his sisters were his legal representatives. The court below while computing dependency at Rs. 12,000 per annum applied multiplier of four only. A very strange reasoning was given for adopting a short multiplier that the two sisters major in age were not dependent on the deceased while the remaining two sisters were likely to attain majority within next four years. We are afraid, the reasoning adopted by the Tribunal below is not in accordance with law. Under section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, where the death has resulted from the accident, the claim can be preferred by all or any of the legal representatives of the deceased. This provision does not speak of dependants or all such legal representatives being dependent on the deceased. Any legal representative of the deceased can prefer claim before the Tribunal irrespective of he being dependent or not dependent on the deceased.