GENERAL MANAGER HARYANA ROADWAYS Vs. RAM CHANDER GAUTAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this judgment I dispose of three F. A. Os. bearing No. 651 titled as The General Manager Haryana Roadways v. Ram Chander Gautam and Ors. , F. A. O. No. 652 of 1995 titled as General Manager Haryana Roadways v. H. K. Gautam and Ors. ; and F. A. O. No. 653 of 1995 titled as The General Manager Haryana Roadways v. Smt. Lakhjinder Kaur and Ors. , as all the three appeals have arisen from the award dated 10. 11. 1994 passed by the Court of Shri Vinod Jain Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Panipat who disposed of three claim petitions bearing Nos. 183 of 1992, 195 of 1993 and 196 of 1993 of different claims.

(2.) THE brief facts of the case are that the petitioners of the aforesaid claim petitions filed separate claim petitions under Section 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act and claimed compensation for the death of Darshan Singh and for the injuries suffered by Ram Chander and H. K. Gautam. The accident in this case took place on 6. 7. 1992 and on that day retired Major Ram Chander aged about 57 years having own private medical practice in village Adyana with his brother Dr. Hari Krishan aged 45 years who was also having his own private clinic in the name of Gautam Nursing Home and along with his two children were returning from Panipat to Sonepat after attending a marriage party in car No. UHO-3312 driven by H. K. Gautam. At about 9 P. M. they parked their car near the Bus Stand Samalkha for taking water. Hari Kishan could not start the car because of some mechanical defect. By chance, at that time a person aged 40 years came to them and told them he was a car mechanic. This person was Darshan Singh deceased who was a Mistri of Samalkha. He repaired the car of Ram Chander and then requested him to give him lift up to Panipat. Ram Chander and his brother Hari Kishan obliged Darshan Singh and when the car reached near Manana crossing on G. T. road it again stopped due to mechanical defect in the engine. The car was parked on the kacha portion and on the left side of the road. In the meanwhile Ranbir Singh who was the driver of Haryana Roadways Bus No. HR-05/7792 and whose bus was following the car could not control the vehide due to his rash and negligent driving struck the vehicle against the car, as a result of which Darshan Singh. Ram Chander and H. K. Gautam sustained multiple injuries. All the three injured were shifted to P. H. C. Samalkha where Darshan Singh mechanic died while Ram Chander and Hari Kishan sustained injuries. Hari Kishan was not having serious injuries but Ram Chander was having multiple fracture which he suffered on left leg besides other injuries. He was referred to Civil Hospital, Panipat. He was operated upon there. He remained admitted in the hospital up to 11. 7. 1992, from where he was shifted to the hospital of his brother and got medical treatment. According to claimant Ram Chander his injuries required one more operation over his fractured leg.

(3.) THE claimants filed rejoinder to the written statement in which they reiterated their allegations made in the claim petitions. All the three claim petitions were consolidated and disposed of by one award and the Tribunal framed the following issues:1)Whether the accident to question took place due to rash and negligent driving of Ranbir Singh respondent No. l while driving the bus bearing registration No. HR-05/7792 during the course of employment of respondents No. 2 and 3 and due to rash and negligent driving of Hari Krishan respondent No. 5 while driving car bearing registration No. UHO-3312 during the course of employment of respondent Nos. 6 and 7 ? OPp 2) If issue No. 1 is proved, to what amount of compensation the petitioners are entitled to and from whom ? OPp 3) Whether the petition is not maintainable ? OPp 4) Relief.