Alok Sharma vs Santosh and Others

Nawal Kishore Agarwal, J.—This is claimant''s appeal against the dismissal of his claim petition by the Additional Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal, Baikunthpur (Korea) in Claim Case No. 52/2003 vide award dated 17-2-2005. Facts necessary for disposal of this appeal are as under:--

(i) The appellant/claimant filed a claim application u/s 166 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (for short "the Act") claiming compensation to the tune of Rs. 8,85,000/- for the injuries sustained by him in the motor accident on 26-2-2001.

(ii) According to the appellant, he met with an accident with the Scooter bearing Registration No. M.P. 59/A/2655 owned by respondent No. 2, being driven by respondent No. 1 and insured by respondent No. 3 at the time of accident. The factum of the accident was admitted by the owner of the vehicle.

(iii) The Tribunal dismissed the claim petition as not maintainable only on the ground of non-filing of First Information Report. Hence, this appeal.

I have heard learned Counsel for the parties arid perused the record of the Tribunal.

Under the Act, there is no provision making the filing of FIR compulsory before filing a claim petition.

It is settled proposition of law that every civil case is decided on its own facts and evidence without influencing the papers and decision of the criminal casein such premises, registration of the offence and police investigation is not a condition precedent for awarding the claim. Besides this due to one reason or another if the First Information Report of vehicular accident is not lodged with the police or the same was given at later stage and police neither registered the offence nor investigated the same, it does not mean that right of the victim for compensation who suffered the vehicular accident is washed away. The victim remains entitled for compensation on proving the facts and circumstances regarding such accident and factum of injuries sustained by him, he could not be deprived from such right, provided by the Act, although such compensation may be awarded only on proving all relevant facts with all probabilities.

Moreover, in the instant case, the factum of accident has been categorically admitted by the respondent-owner of the vehicle in his written statement. There is no need to prove the factum of accident by adducing the evidence, which has already been adduced by the appellant.

In view of above, the Tribunal has committed a gross error in dismissing the claim petition as not maintainable for want of filing of FIR and the same is not sustainable in law.

For the reasons mentioned hereinabove, the appeal is allowed. The award impugned is liable to be and is hereby set aside.

The matter is remanded back to the Tribunal for deciding the claim application on its own merits, after affording the due opportunity of hearing and leading evidence to both the parties in the light of observations made herein above.

The parties are directed to appear before the Tribunal on 21st of January, 2012. Record of the Tribunal be sent to it forthwith. No order as to costs.