IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH FAO No.3674 of 2008 (O&M) Date of decision:22.12.2010 The New India Assurance Company Limited ....Appellant versus Gurjit Kaur and others ...Respondents CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE K. KANNAN ---- Present: Mr. V. Ramswaroop, Advocate, for the appellant. None for the respondents. ---- 1. Whether reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment ? 2. To be referred to the reporters or not ? 3. Whether the judgment should be reported in the digest ? ---- K.Kannan, J.(Oral) 1. The appeal is against the award passed by the Tribunal for a claim arising out of an accident that resulted in death of the sons of the claimants 2 and 3. The first claimant was the sister of the deceased and the second respondent before the Tribunal was the brother-cum-owner of the vehicle. The deceased was driving his brother's vehicle and his brother-second respondent was sitting as a pillion rider. He slipped and fell from the motorcycle and had the fatal injuries. The claim was resisted by the Insurance Company on the ground that there arose no scope to cover the risk for death of a driver of a motorcycle who had but borrowed from the owner/insured and the deceased being the tort feasor FAO No.3674 of 2008 (O&M) - 2 - himself, there was no cause of action to prosecute the case before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal. Learned counsel relies on the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Ningamma and another Versus United India Insurance Company Limited-2009 ACJ 2020. 2. The claim petition was clearly not tenable against the insurer for the death caused to the driver of the motorcycle and, therefore, the award passed by the Tribunal is required to be set aside. Still there shall be a liability for the Insurance Company on no fault basis under Section 140 in the manner provided by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Eshwarappa @ Maheshwarappa and another Versus C. S. Gurushanthappa and another-2010(8) Scale 263 . The award is set aside and the appeal is allowed to the above extent restricting the liability of the Insurance Company however only to Rs.50,000/- which shall be shared between the parents, who are claimants 2 and 3 before the Tribunal. (K.KANNAN) JUDGE 22.12.2010 sanjeev