KAMAKHYA DAS Vs. UPEN BARUAH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal under Section. 173 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, for short the 'Act' has been preferred against the award dated 12.11.97 passed by the learned Member, Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Nagaon in MAC case No. 109 of 1996 whereby a sum of Rs.9,08,981.3 Ip has been ordered to be paid by the Oriental Insurance Company Limited and the New India Assurance Company Ltd. in equal share.

(2.) Being aggrieved with the aforesaid award, Sri Kamakhya Das ownsr of the Bus No. AS-02-5477 and the Oriental Insurance Company Ltd. have preferred this appeal challenging the legality and validity of the award as mentioned above.

(3.) At the very beginning, in view of the joint appeal having been filed by the owner of the bus and the Oriental! Insurance Company Ltd., the learned counsel for the appellants has been asked to clarify whether the appeal is maintainable under the provisions of the Act. The learned counsel for the appellants relying on a decision of the Apex Court reported in (1998) 9 SCC 202 (Narendra Kumar and another- Vs- Yarenissa and others) submitted that the law laid down in paragraph 6 of the aforesaid judgment permitted joint appeal by the owner as well as by the Insurance Company against an award which in the event of failure of the Insurance Company may be executed against the owner and, from this point of view, the learned counsel for the appellants further submitted that the owner, therefore. can be said to be the aggrieved person.