NEW INDIA ASSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED Vs. MOHIT GARGI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant-Insurance Company has preferred the present appeal against the award dtd. 28/2/2017 passed in the claim petition filed under Sec. 163-A of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (for short, 'MV Act') by the learned Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Bathinda (for short, 'the Tribunal'), whereby the claim petition filed by the respondents/claimants was allowed and the appellant-Insurance company was held liable to pay the compensation to the respondents/claimants to the tune of Rs.5,00,000.00 along with interest @ 9% per annum.

(2.) The brief facts of the case, as pleaded in the claim petition, are that on 25/11/2015, the deceased, along with his parents i.e. the respondents/claimants and his brother, was travelling from Sri Ganganagar to Bathinda in Car bearing registration No.PB-03-S-5417. At about 4:30 a.m., when they reached near the bus stand of Balluana, opposite the gate of village Virk Kalan, the said car collided with a roadside tree. At the time of the accident, the vehicle was being driven by Mohit Gargi. As a result, Krish Gargi sustained fatal injuries and died on the spot. A DDR in this regard was registered with the police on the same day, and the matter was duly reported to the appellant/respondent-Insurance Company, who deputed their representatives, including Surveyors and an Investigator. After verifying the accident and examining the relevant documents, the appellant/respondent-Insurance Company sanctioned the own damage claim of the said vehicle.

(3.) Upon notice of the claim petition, respondent appeared and contested the claim petition by filing its written reply and denied the factum of the accident/compensation.