NATIONAL INSURANCE CO LTD Vs. NISHA MANGOTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By the medium of this Civil First Miscellaneous Appeal the appellant-insurer has invoked the jurisdiction of this Court in terms of Section 173 of Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (for short Act) and has questioned the award dated 03.02.2006 passed by Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Jammu in File No.355/Claim, titled as Nisha Magotra & others vs Jagdish Raj & anr, (for short, impugned award), whereby an award of Rs.37,64,832/- along with interest @ 7.5% came to be awarded in favour of claimants and against the appellant-insurer from the date of filing of the claim petition till its realization, on the grounds taken in the memo of appeal.

(2.) It is necessary to give flashback of the case, the womb of which has given birth to the instant appeal.

(3.) Claimants-respondents 1 to 3 filed a claim petition before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Jammu, in terms of the mandate of Section 166 of the Act, claiming compensation to the tune of Rs.66,00,000/- as per the break-ups given in para-21 of the claim petition. It is averred in the claim petition that the deceased, namely, Ravinder Kumar Magotra died on 09.06.2003 in a tragic motor vehicular accident, which took place near Kalibari (Kathua) when he was traveling in Bus No.PB-11-N-9528 from Jammu to Kathua, which was hit by the offending Bus No.DL-01-PA-4673 coming from opposite direction towards Jammu. The respondents-claimants being wife and daughters respectively of the deceased were totally dependant upon him, who was their sole bread earner and have lost the source of dependency.