IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH FAO No. 603 of 1995(O&M) DATE OF DECISION : 19th August, 2010 The Oriental Insurance Company Ltd. ...Appellant Vs. Kesar Kaur and others. ...Respondents Present : Mr.D.P. Gupta, Advocate for the appellant None for the respondents CORAM: HON’BLE MR.JUSTICE K.KANNAN 1. Whether Reporter 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 Insurance Company is on appeal on the ground that the driving licence was fake and that it could not have been made liable. The Insurance Company had also proved such a fact by examining a clerk from the licencing authority as RW 1. However, the owner of the vehicle had given evidence to the effect that he believed the licence to be genuine and he had not committed any breach of the terms of the policy. It is the belief of the owner expressed bonafide that will form the basis of whether insurance company shall provide indemnity to the owner of vehicle or not. In this case such a bonafide belief finds expressed through the evidence of the owner of the vehicle. 2. The award of the tribunal under this circumstance is sustained. The Insurance Company also took the objection that accident was the result of contributory negligence of the driver of FAO No. 603 of 1995(O&M) -2- the insured himself but this shall not be the plea which shall be available for the insurer to contend in appeal without a right of defence under Section 170 of the Motor Vehicles Act. 3. The award is confirmed and the appeal is dismissed. (K.KANNAN) August 19, 2010 Judge p.singh