FAO No. 3973 of 2009 -1- IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH FAO No. 3973 of 2009 (O&M) Date of decision : 27.4.2010 ... National Insurance Co. Ltd. ................Appellant vs. Rajesh Kumar and others .................Respondents Coram: Hon'ble Mr. Justice K.C. Puri Present: Sh. R.C. Kapoor, Advocate for the appellant Sh. S.S. Salar, Advocate for respondents No. 1 to 3. ... K.C. Puri, J. (Oral) This is an appeal directed by National Insurance Co. Ltd., against the award dated 7.4.2009 passed by Sh. Sanjeev Jindal, Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Panchkula, vide which the claim petition preferred by three major sons claiming compensation on account of death of their mother Satya Devi, was accepted. Learned Tribunal has taken the income of the deceased as Rs.1,87,100/- per annum as per Income Tax Return Exhibit C-5 and the yearly dependency was calculated as Rs.1,24,734/-. The multiplier applied by the tribunal was 8 and in this manner, the amount FAO No. 3973 of 2009 -2- calculated was Rs. 9,97,872/-. Another sum of Rs.5,000/- was allowed on account of last rites and funeral expenses and in this manner, the amount payable to the claimants was calculated as Rs.10,02,872/-. Aggrieved against the abovesaid award, the Insurance company has preferred the present appeal. Learned counsel for the appellant has submitted that application under Section 170 of the Motor Vehicles Act, was accepted by the Tribunal and as such the Insurance company can take all the pleas available to the driver and owner. Learned counsel for the appellant has submitted that the sole basis of determining the income of the deceased was income tax return Exhibit C-5. So, it is contended that from the perusal of the return, it is revealed that out of the income of Rs.1,87,100/- the income of Rs.91,914/- was that of income from the property, which even according to the claimants, is still being received by them. It is further submitted that the claimant Rajesh Kumar, while appearing as his own witness has stated that Cafe is still being run. So, it is submitted that amount of Rs.1,87,100/-, calculated by the Tribunal is on higher side. It is further contended that the income tax has not been deducted from the income from the business. So, it is submitted that excessive amount has been given to the claimants. Learned counsel for the claimants has submitted that so far as the income of Rs.95,190/- is concerned, that was income of Smt. Satya Devi from profession. It is further submitted that the age of the deceased was 58 ½ years and according to the authority reported as FAO No. 3973 of 2009 -3- Smt. Sarla Verma and others vs. Delhi Transport Corporation and another 2009(3) RCR (Civil) 77, the multiplier of 9 should have been applied. I have given my thoughtful consideration to the rival submissions made by both the sides and have also gone through the record of the case. The Tribunal has taken the income of the deceased as Rs.1,87,100/- per annum. However, the Tribunal has not properly scrutinized the income tax return. Out of the income of Rs.1,87,100/- , income from the profession was Rs.95,190, whereas income from the property was 91,914/-. Rajesh Kumar, while appearing as his own witness has stated that income from the property is still being received after death of Satya Devi. So, there is no loss to the family in respect of income from house property. Counsel for the appellant has rightly stated that income tax is also to be deducted from the income from profession. From the perusal of the income tax return, it is revealed that the total tax deducted at source was Rs.20,091/- and out of which deceased has sought a refund of Rs.10,991/-, meaning thereby the net liability of the income tax comes to about Rs.10,000/-. However, that income tax is payable in respect of income from the house property also. So, an amount of Rs.5,190/- stands deducted on account of income from house property. So, in this manner, the total income of the deceased stands calculated as Rs.90,000/- per annum (Rs.95,190 – Rs.5,190). By deducting 1/3rd amount for personal expenses of the deceased, the FAO No. 3973 of 2009 -4- yearly dependency comes to Rs.60,000/-. The multiplier applicable as per Smt. Sarla Verma's case (Supra), at the age of 58 ½ years, is 9. So, by applying that multiplier, the claimants are held entitled to claim Rs.5,40,000/-. The Tribunal has granted a sum of Rs.5,000/- on account of last rites and funeral expenses. So, in this manner, the claimants are held entitled to claim Rs.5,45,000/- alongwith interest as per award of the Tribunal. Consequently, the appeal stands partly accepted to the extent discussed above. ( K.C. Puri ) 27.4.2010 Judge chugh