NATIONAL INSURANCE CO LTD Vs. BALWANT SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IT seems that two complaint cases, one by Balwant Singh against National Insurance Co. Ltd, the other by Joginder Singh & 2 Ors against Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. were filed before the District Forum. Against finding recorded thereon, in case of complaint filed by Joginder Singh & 2 Ors., two First Appeals were preferred before State Commission against common order of District Forum, as while First Appeal No. 1246/2005 had been filed by Joginder Singh complainant against Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd. for enhancing compensation as awarded by the District Forum, First Appeal No. 1259/2005 against said order was filed also by Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd for setting aside the judgment and order of District Forum against finding recorded by District Forum. In case of Balwant Singh, complainant, against upholding claim of claimant by District Forum, First Appeal No. 1317/2005 was field by National Insurance Co. Ltd. for setting aside impugned order of District Forum. Since claim of complainants in all the two complaint cases of the theft of vehicle were repudiated by insurance company holding that in violation of terms of the policy, insured vehicle which was a private car was being used as a taxi, State Commission disposed of the three appeals by a common order, the issue being involved identical in all three appeals.

(2.) THOUGH rival contentions were raised before fora below as to the liability of insured to repudiate claim, taking violation of terms of policy in case of theft of the vehicle, State Commission, in our view, rightly negated repudiation of claim holding that theft of the vehicle had no nexus regarding the user or purpose for which the vehicle was being actually plied. The use of a private car even for commercial purposes in case of theft of the vehicle, cannot be construed a fundamental cause of theft, there being no nexus between theft and user of the vehicle as taxi. Though there has been judicial precedent of National Commission also, without dilating the issue further, we wish to confine ourselves to a decision of the Hon ble Apex Court in the matter of National Insurance Co. Ltd. Vs. Nitin Khandelwal, 2008 ACJ 2035 wherein identical situation while considering as to whether the insurance company was liable to indemnify the insured for his loss, in a case of theft of the vehicle, Hon ble Apex court held that breach of terms of policy was not germane in case of theft of the vehicle.

(3.) IN the case under consideration before us, following theft of the vehicle, there was no trace and it had not been recovered. Drawing inspiration from the ratio of decision of the Hon ble court, we do not consider to discuss the factual backgrounds of the other cases on which reliance was placed by the parties. The revision petition in the circumstances is dismissed affirming the finding recorded by the State Commission, with no order as to cost.