FAO No.5238 of 2004 -1- IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH FAO No.5238 of 2004 DATE OF DECISION: February 15, 2011 NATIONAL INSURANCE CO. LTD. ...APPELLANT VERSUS SMT. SURYA AND OTHERS ...RESPONDENTS CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE K.KANNAN. 1. Whether reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgement? Yes/No 2. To be referred to the reporters or not? Yes/No 3. Whether the judgement should be reported in the digest? Yes/No ---- PRESENT: MR. V. RAMSWAROOP, ADVCOATE FOR THE APPELLANT. MR. S.S. BHINDER, ADVOCATE FOR THE RESPONDENTS. K.KANNAN, J.(ORAL) 1. The appeal is by the insurance company challenging the award on the ground that the policy had been secured to the vehicle involved in the accident by fraud. The admitted case was that a motor accident had taken place involving a truck bearing registration No.DL1LA-2228 when boy died in the accident and the claimants were parents. The accident had taken place on 21.3.2001. 2. Although there had been no defence questioning the policy in the written statement, it was attemtped to be shown at the trial by producing a copy of the document which had been assigned as Mark 'B' to read into evidence a copy of a letter of insurance company stating that they were accepting a request on behalf of the owner that engine number and chassis number of a vehicle PB09 1368 was to be changed for DL1LA-2228. This FAO No.5238 of 2004 -2- request was alleged to have come on 3.4.2001, that was subsequent to the accident. 3. I cannot allow the counsel for the insurance company to build an edifice of an argument through the document which was not exhibited in the evidence. I can only take this to be a self-serving document. The copy of policy had been filed by the owner as R-1 which clearly reveals that the policy had been issued on 5.5.2000, to enure till 4.5.2001, for vehicle No.DL1LA-2228. The best method for proving any fraud, if it existed, was to file a proposal form at the relevant time in the year 2000, to show that the insurer had undertaken to cover the risk only for vehicle PB09-1368 and not DL1LA-2228. A carbon copy of the policy that they had issued at that time could have also shown any semblance of fraud by the insured by pointing out any discrepancy about the registration number of the vehicle that was found in the copy of the policy that the insurance company had retained and what was brought before the Tribunal by the insured and exhibited as R-1. The insurance company did neither. If a copy of the insurance is filed in Court, it shall be the duty of the insurer to appropriately counter the details of policy by the documents in their custody. The reliance on a copy of letter retained by them and filed in Court as Mark 'B' cannot advance the case of the insurer to any extent. I do no find the appeal by the insurer as a bona fide exercise and I dismiss the appeal with costs assessed at `5000/-. February 15, 2011 (K.KANNAN) Gulati JUDGE