NEW INDIA ASSURANCE COMPANY LTD Vs. CHINU DAS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In MAC Appeal No. 40 of 2013, the appellant-insurer is aggrieved by the award dated 29-1-2013 passed by the learned Member, Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Court No. 1, Agartala, West Tripura in TS (MAC) No. 103 of 2001 directing the payment of Rs.8,84,500/- to the claimant-respondents No. 1 to 5. MAC Appeal No. 41 of 2013 is the connected appeal filed by the claimants-respondent No. 1 to 5 against the same award seeking enhancement of the compensation awarded from Rs. 8,84,500/- to Rs. 14,44,000/-.

(2.) The facts giving rise to the appeals may be briefly noticed at the outset. On 8-1-2001 at about 5.45 PM, the deceased, Nanda Dulal Das was travelling in a Jeep bearing registration No. TR-01-2724 and on reaching a place called Baludhum, indiscriminate firing was suddenly started by some unknown miscreants aiming at the passengers of the jeep and caused bullet injuries on the deceased and other passengers including the driver of the jeep. One Swapan Banik instantly died on the spot, while other injured were taken to GB Hospital, but the deceased succumbed to his injuries and was declared dead at the hospital. An FIR was lodged with Jirania Police Station over the incident, which was registered as Jirania P.S. Case No. 04 of 2001 U/s 148/149/326/302/307 IPC and under Section 27, Arms Act against the unknown extremists. According to the claimant-respondents, the deceased was 30 years old and was running a grocery shop at Mandai Bazar on the date of the accident by earning Rs. 8,000/- per month. He was claimed to be the sole earning member in the family. They filed the claim petition claiming a sum of Rs. 13,50,000/- as compensation for the death of the deceased.

(3.) The claim petition was resisted by both the owner of the jeep, the respondent No. 6 herein, and the appellant-insurer by filing their respective written statements. The common stance taken by the appellant-insurer and the owner of the vehicle is that there was no rash and negligent driving by the driver of the vehicle and that the deceased died of indiscriminate firings by extremists and not due to vehicular accident. The appellant-insurer also additionally pleaded that the claim petition was filed by the claimants in collusion with the owner of the jeep. The Tribunal, after taking evidence, passed the impugned award awarding the amount of compensation indicated earlier. At this stage, it may be noted that in the first round of litigation, the Tribunal had held that the claim petition was not maintainable inasmuch as the deceased died of attack by extremists and not in a vehicular accident. However, the matter was taken to appeal before this Court in MAC Appeal No. 6 of 2005, and this Court by the judgment dated 31-8-2012 overturned the decision of the Tribunal holding that the deceased died of vehicular accident and remanded the case to the Tribunal for fresh trial. That is how the impugned award was passed by the Tribunal. The Tribunal held the income of the deceased to be Rs. 5,000/- per month and increased his total income by 30% towards his future prospect as he was aged 30 years old on the date of the accident. He also awarded Rs. 2,000/- and Rs. 5,000/- towards funeral expenses and loss of consortium. As no appeal was preferred by the appellant-insurer, the issue as to whether the deceased died of vehicular accident having been decided against it has attained finality and can no longer be alive in this appeal.