spb/- 1 ca779-07.sxw IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE SIDE JURISDICTION CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 779 OF 2007 IN FIRST APPEAL (ST.) NO. 2239 OF 2007 National Insurance Co.Ltd., ... Applicants. V/s. Mr. Damodar Waman Khond & Ors. ... Respondents. --- Mr. Sandesh Deshpande for the Applicants. Mr.M.V. Rawool i/by P.B. Shah for the Respondent Nos.1 & 2. ----- CORAM : D. G. KARNIK, J. DATE : 09th FEBRUARY, 2011. P.C. 1 This application is for condonation of delay of 148 days in filing of an appeal against the award passed by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal. The reason for condonation of delay is given in paragraph 6 of the application which reads thus : “6. The Applicants state that initially there was no decision taken whether any appeal to be preferred or not as the claim of the Respondent was partly allowed. But since the Respondent no.1 filed an execution Application in the lower court, then the Learned Advocate represented the Applicant obtained the certified copy of the Judgment and award on 6th January, 2007 and it was sent to the Divisional office. The Applicant states that thereafter the same was forwarded to the Regional office for necessary approval for filing the First Appeal in the Hon’ble High Court. The Applicant states that in this process there is delay of 148 days to file the present First spb/- 2 ca779-07.sxw Appeal in this Hon’ble High Court.” 2 The reason mentioned in the application is that the applicants had not taken a decision whether to file appeal or not, as the claim of the respondent was partly allowed. Inaction of the appellants which is a nationalized Insurance Company in not taking a decision cannot be a ground for condonation of a delay. The law requires that an appeal to be filed within 90 days. Decision must be taken in the appropriate time so that the appeal can be filed within 90 days. It is a clear case of negligence on the part of the officers concerned in not taking a decision in time. 3 However, since it is a National Insurance Company, the delay is condoned but subject to the payment of compensatory costs which the applicants should recover from the officers who were responsible and negligent in not taking a decision in appropriate time. Accordingly the application is allowed subject to the cost of Rs.10,000/- as a condition precedent. Costs shall be deposited in this court within four weeks. The applicants shall recover this cost from the officers who are responsible for not taking decision in time. If the costs are not deposited within four weeks, the application shall stand dismissed for non-compliance of this order without further reference to the court and in that case the appeal also shall stand dismissed as barred by limitation. If the costs are deposited within the stipulated time, the respondents are permitted to withdraw the same. [D.G. KARNIK, J.]