F.A.O.NO. 3624 OF 2010 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH F.A.O.NO. 3624 OF 2010 Date of decision:27th October, 2010 The New India Assurance Company Limited, through its Branch Manager, Kurukshetra(through its Manager(Legal), SCO No. 36-37, Sector 17-A, Chandigarh. .......Appellant Versus Smt. Bala Devi and others ........Respondents BEFORE: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE K.KANNAN Present: Ms. Vandana Malhotra, Advocate, for the appellant. None for the respondents. 1. Whether Reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment? Yes/No 2. To be referred to the Reporters or not?Yes/No 3. Whether the judgment should be reported in the Digest? Yes/No K.Kannan, J.(Oral) 1. The appeal is by the Insurance Company, denying the liability on the ground that the person who died in the accident was a borrower of the vehicle and the liability of the insurer could not be fastened in the line of the decision rendered by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Ningamma and another Versus United India Insurance Company Ltd. (2009) ACJ 2020. It shall however, become necessary to examine the contentions of the counsel for the appellant to find out whether there is a liability under any terms of the policy, as laid down F.A.O.NO. 3624 OF 2010 2 by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Bimlesh and others versus New India Assurance Company Limited (2010) 7 SCALE 732. There is a personal accident cover for the owner and the Tribunal has invoked the said clause for making the insurer liable for the claim. The personal accident cover is indeed a personal right for the owner or his representative and it cannot extend to any other person. Therefore, the Insurance Company could not have been made liable even for a lakh of rupees under personal accident. I still hold that the insurer shall become liable on 'no fault basis' under Section 140 of the Motor Vehicles Act, in the manner laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Eshwarappa @ Maheshwarappa and Anro. Vs. C.S.Gurushanthappa and Anr (2010) 8 Scale 263. 2. The award of the Tribunal is modified and the liability of the Insurance Company shall be contemplated under Section 140 of the Motor Vehicles Act and in the light of the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Eshwarappa case(supra). 3. The appeal is allowed to the above extent. [K.KANNAN] JUDGE 27th October, 2010 Shivani Kaushik