NANTIONAL INSURANCE CO LTD Vs. CHANDRA PRABHA BARMAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal has been filed by the National Insurance Company Limited against the award of the Tribunal granting total compensation of Rs. 2,21,900/-. Out of the aforesaid amount, a sum of Rs. 86,400/- has been granted to the claimant-daughter by way of compensation for the death of her father, who, admittedly, did not die on account of vehicular accident. At the very outset, the learned counsel for the Insurance Company has submitted that the present appeal be converted in a petition U/ Art.227 of the Constitution of India and that he would limit his prayer to the deletion of the amount of compensation which has been awarded to the claimant-daughter on account of the death of her father.

(2.) Since a question of law has arisen before us which is not dependent upon any fact, we have converted the appeal into a petition u/ Art. 227 of the Constitution of India.

(3.) The counsel for the Insurance Company has argued that admittedly the father of the claimant died on account of heart attack and not due to vehicular accident. It has also been argued that the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal can award compensation only in connection with the liability of the insurer or the insured which arises out of vehicular accident and not for of any remote cause. The argument is well merited. The claim for the death of the father might or could have been taken up under Law of Torts and not by Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, which has got limited jurisdiction to deal with claims arising out of accident. Such a claim which has been allowed by the Tribunal could only be within the competence of the Civil Court and not within the competence of the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal. It would be too much to presume that the father of the Claimant died as a result of the shock on account of the death of his wife, may be the man had all the arteries blocked. The chance that the claimant's father was suffering from serious heart ailment cannot be ruled out either. In any case we are left guessing. But the court surely cannot grant any relief on the basis of guesswork. Since the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal lacks inherent jurisdiction to entertain the claim for damages on account of the death of the claimant's father, this court has got no other option but to delete the compensation of Rs. 86,400/-.