KALAWATI KUER Vs. SRINIVAS SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant-claimant has filed this appeal against the order dated 11.12.1998, passed under section 140 of Motor Vehicles Act by the District Judgecum-Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Sasaram, in Motor Vehicle Claim Case No. 11 of 1998, whereby the learned District Judge-cum-Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal has dismissed the petition of the claimants under section 140 of the Motor Vehicles Act.

(2.) It was argued by the learned lawyer for the appellant that the vehicle was insured with the New India Assurance Co. Ltd., Branch Office, Sasaram and, therefore, the insurance company is liable to pay the interim compensation under section 140 of the Motor Vehicles Act. The contention of the learned lawyer for the respondent, the New India Assurance Co. Ltd., was that the vehicle involved in the accident was a tractor which was insured for the agricultural purposes and it was not permissible for the owner of the tractor to carry any passenger on it. It was submitted by the learned lawyer for the appellant that the deceased was an Overseer and while he was returning home, due to nonavailability of transport vehicle he was standing on the road and he saw the tractor in question coming there and that tractor was of a person of his village and he boarded it. It was also submitted by him that while on way to the village the tractor met with an accident and it fell down in a canal causing the death of the deceased. It was contended by the learned lawyer appearing for the New India Assurance Co. Ltd. that the deceased was a gratuitous passenger on the tractor and in such case the liability of payment of interim compensation lies on the owner of the vehicle and not on the insurance company.

(3.) The brief facts of the case are that on 22.9.1997 at about 4 o'clock in the evening the deceased Ram Layak Singh was going to his home in village Parsar and in absence of any conveyance he boarded the tractor bearing registration No. BR 24-A 1199 which was proceeding towards his village and after proceeding to some distance the tractor fell down in a canal and the deceased Ram Layak Singh died due to that accident. When Ram Layak Singh was taken to Medical Officer he was declared dead. On the basis of thefardbeyan of the informant who was elder brother of the deceased a case under sections 279 and 304-A, Indian Penal Code was registered and after investigation charge-sheet was submitted in the case against the accused.