"-•!Ss. ln;'? HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BSLASPUR DIVSSION BENCH HON'BLE SHRI RAJEEV GUPTA, C.J. & HON'BLESHRl RANGNATH CHANDRAKAR, J. Misc. Appeal No. 775 of 2006 Appetlants Claimants Respondents NoR-applicants Kamli, W/o Massu, Aged about 43 years, Caste Madiya Sukadi, D/o Massu, Aged about 20 years, Caste Madiya Both R/o Village Ransargipal (Pithepara), Thana Parpa, Post Karanji, District Bastar (CG) VERSUS Saiyad Jafer Madni, S/o Saiyad Razzad Madni, Aged about 38 years, R/o Madni Buitding, Main Road, Jaipur, District Koraput, (Orissa)(Registered owner of the Truck bearing No.OR 10A/3786) P Balaji, S/o P Lacchu, Caste Kapu, Aged about 27 years, R/o Samber Tota Ward No.14 Jaipur (Orissa) Thana Town Thana (Driver of the Truck bearing No.OR 10A/3786) The National Insurance Companv Limited, Branch Office above Central Bank, Main Road, Jagdalpur, District Bastar, CG (Insurer of the Truck bearing No.OR 10A/3786) Misceilaneous Appeal u/S 173 ofthe Motor Vehicle Act. Present: Shri Alok Dewangan, counsel for the appellants. Shri Dasarath Gupta and Shri SS Rajput, counsel for respondent No.3. •^'e®^^^? •:••>' . r "' ^ /"? /- : 1 j ^&S e... ~-.\ ORDER (07;nJanuary,2011) The following order of the Court was passed by Rajeev Gupta, C.J. This is claimants' appeai for enhancement of the compensation awarded by the Second Additional Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Jagdalpur (for short, 'the Tribunal') vide award dated 25.02.2006, passed in Claim Case No. 15/2005. 2) As against the compensation of Rs.7,77,400/- claimed by the appeltants/ claimants, unfortunate mother and sister of deceased Massy, by filing a claim petition under Section 1 66 of the Motor Vehicles Act, for his death in the motor accident on 05.05.2004, the Tribunal awarded a total sum of Rs.1,60,500/- as compensation along with interest @ 6% per annum from the date of filing of the c!aim petition till the date of actua! payment. 3) The Tribunal on a close scrutiny of the entire evidence led before it heid that deceased Massy died on account of the injuries sustained by him in the motor accident on 05.05,2004; the accident occurred due to rash and negligent driving of the driver of the offending vehicle Truck bearing registration No.OR-IOA/3786; as the above offending vehicle Truck, on the date of the accident was insured with the National Insurance Company Limited the Insurance Company was liable to pay compensation to the claimants. ":!8!6». ""\ "\ •^ ;».i .-^^. s \;;-^^,-?;-;^"^ ^ •K^/-:-- "'^ ^ ^ ^—^^' ^i,... "• .^S^ ''•^&^-T.-!.^' 4) As the respondents have not filed any appeal against the award, the above findings recorded by the Tribunal have now attained finality. 5) The Tribunal assessed the income of the deceased at Rs.2,880/- per month. By deducting more than 50% of the income of the deceased towards his personal expenses, the claimants' dependency was assessed at Rs.1,000/- and Rs.12,000/- per annum. By multiplying the annual dependency of Rs.12,000/- with the muitiplier of 13, the compensation was worked out to Rs.1,56,000/-. By aw&rding further sum of Rs.4,500/- under other heads, the Tribunal awarded a total sum of Rs.1,60,500/- as compensation to the claimants for the death of deceased Massy in the motor accident. The Tribunal further directed payment of interest on the above amount of compensation of Rs.1,60,500/- @ 6% per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition till the date of actual payment. 6) Shri Alok Dewangan, learned counsel for the appellants submitted that the Tribunal has erred in deducting more than 50% of the income of the deceased towards his personal expenses and in assessing the claimants' dependency at Rs.1,000/- per month, Rs.12,000/- per annum only; and in awarding low compensation of Rs.1,60,500/- only. 7) Shri Dasarath Gupta and Shri SS Rajput, learned counsel for respondent No.3, the National Insurance Company Limited, on the other hand, supported the award and contended that the 1 1-~~t' :^\ "^flS. ^' -)/' ~ ^. •{>. I / ,r '* 1 -^ compensation of Rs.1,60,500/- awarded by the Tribunal is just and proper compensation in the facts and circumstances of the present case. 8) In a motor accident claim case, what is important is that, the compensation to be awarded by the Courts/Tribunais should be just and proper compensation in the facts and circumstances of the case. It should neither be a meager amount of compensation, nor a Bonanza. 9) Now we shall examine as to whether the compensation of Rs.1,60,500/- awarded by the Tribunal is just and proper compensation in the facts and circumstances of the present case. 10) Qn due consideration of the evidence led by the claimants about the income of the deceased we are satisfied that the Tribunal has rightly assessed the income of the deceased at Rs.2,880/-per month. 11) Nevertheless, the Tribunal has certainly fallen into error in deducting more than 50% of the income of the deceased towards his personal expenses and in assessing the claimants' dependency at Rs.1,000/- per month and Rs.12,000/- per annum only. ' 12) As deceased Massy was unmamed on the date of the accident, the permissible deduction would be 50% of the income of the deceased towards his personal expenses in view of the view of the dictum of the Apex Court in the case of Syed Basheer Ahamed and others Versus IVIohammed Jameel and another reported in (2009) 2 Supreme Court Cases 225. We, therefore, assess the claimants' dependency at Rs.1,440/- per month which is rounded off to Rs.1,400/- per month. The claimants' annual dependency, thus, is assessed at Rs.16,800/-. 13) Considering that deceased Massy was unmarried on the date of the accident and claimants are his mother and sister, we are ofthe opinion that multiplier of 11 would be appropriate in the present case. By multiplying the -annual dependency of Rs.16,800/- with the multiplier of 11, the compensation works out to Rs.1,84,800/-. The claimants are further entitled to receive Rs.5,000/- towards funeral expenses and Rs.5,000/- for loss of estate. The claimants; thus, become entitled to receive a total sum of Rs.1,94,800/- as compensation for the death of deceased Massy in the motoraccident. 14) Considering all the relevant aspects ofthe matter, including the delay in disposal ofthe ctaim petition and the present appeal; and the fact that the Insurance Company alone is not to be blamed for the entire delay in the matter, we quantify the amount of interest on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.34,300/-at Rs.3,700/-. 15) For the foregoing reasons, the appeal filed by the appellants/ ciaimants for enhancement of the compensation is al!owed in part. The compensation of Rs.1,60,500/- awarded by the Tribunal is enhanced to Rs.1,94,800/- with further quantified w amount of interest of Rs.3,700/- on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.34,300/-. 16) Respondent No.3 the National Insurance Company Limited is granted three months' time for depositing the total sum of Rs.38,000/- (Rs.34,300/- towards enhanced amount of compensation + Rs.3,700/- towards quantified amount of interest on the enhanced amount of compensation of Rs.34,300/-) before the concerning Claims Tribunal. No order as to costs. Sd/- Ranenath Chandrakar Judge I padma