Panmeshwari and Others vs Pehlad Singh and Others

Amarjeet Chaudhary, J.—This appeal is directed against the award of the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Bhiwani, who, on a claim petition, u/s 110 A of the Motor Vehicles Act, had awarded a sum of Rs. 57,600/- as compensation on account of death of Ram Niwas. Out of this amount of compensation, Rs. 10,000/- paid to the heirs as ex gratia grant, were to be deducted from the amount of compensation. In this case, the claimants were held entitled to Rs. 1,15.200/- as compensation. However, the appellants-claimants were awarded Rs. 57,600/- bolding that the accident had occurred due to rash and negligent driving of the truck driver and that of Ram Niwas deceased who was driving the bus.

Aggrieved against the said award, the appellants have preferred this appeal

The challenge to the said award is that no fault liability can be attributed to the deceased. The other plea raised by the appellants is that the deceased was 35 years of age at the time of his death. As such, the Tribunal had erred in law in applying a multiplier of 16 and a higher multiplier sheuld have been applied.

I have gone through the entire paper-book with the assistance of Mr. L. M Suri, Sr. Advocate, the learned counsel for the respondents.

On the consideration of the matter, I am not inclined to interfere in the well reasoned findings recorded by the Tribunal under issue No. 1 which he had held that contributory negligence of the truck, driver and that of Ram Niwas deceased was 50 : 50. With regard to the application of the multiplier, 1 am of the view that it has been proved on record that the deceased Ram Niwas was 35 years of age at the time of his death. In this case, the Tribunal had rightly assessed the monthly income of the deceased and the claimants'' dependency at Rs. 7,200/ per annum.

Taking into consideration the age of the deceased Ram Niwas who was a young man of 35 years at the time of his death and the annual dependency of the claimants, I am of the view that it is a fit case in which a multiplier of 20 should be applied. By applying this multiplier, the amount of compensation to which the claimants shall be entitled, comes to Rs. 1,44,000/-. Slice the liability has been fixed 50 : 50 between the two drivers of the offending vehicles, the claimants-appellants shall be entitled to Rs. 72,0 00/- with 12% interest from the date of claim petition However, I see no justification in deducting Rs. 10 000/-paid to the heirs of the deceased as ex-gratia grant from the amount of compensation.

Consequently, the F. A. O. is allowed to the extent indicated above. It is made clear that Rs. 47,600/- already awarded by the Tribunal shall be adjusted from the amount of Rs. 72,100/- now awarded as compensation by this Court It is also made clear that a sum of Rs. 10,000/- paid as ex-gratia grant to the heirs of the deceased, is not liable to be deducted from the amount of compensation. No order as to costs.