Case: MAGMA GENERAL INSURANCE CO. LTD Vs. NANU RAM ALIAS CHUHRU RAM

No. 2 -an unmarried sister, the High Court correctly considered them to be dependents of the deceased, and made a deduction of 1/3 rd towards personal expenses of the deceased.The judgment of the High Court is, therefore, affirmed on this count.9.3. With respect to the income of the deceased, as the family could not produce any evidence to show that the income of the deceased was Rs. 15,000 per month, as claimed, the High Court took his income to be Rs. 6,000, which is marginally above the minimum wage of an unskilled worker at Rs. 5,342.This finding is also not being interfered with.9.4. The Insurance Company has submitted that the father and the sister of the deceased could not be treated as dependents, and it is only a mother who can be dependent of her son.This contention deserves to be repelled.The deceased was a bachelor, whose mother had pre-deceased him. The deceased?s father was about 65 years old, and an unmarried sister. The deceased was contributing a part of his meagre income to the family for their sustenance and survival. Hence, they would be entitled to compensation as his dependents.9.5. The Insurance Company has contended that the High Court had wrongly awarded Rs.1,00,000 towards loss of love and affection,and Rs. 25,000 towards funeral expenses.The judgment of this Court in Pranay Sethi (supra) has set out the various amounts to be awarded as compensation under the conventional heads in case of death. The relevant extract of the judgment is reproduced herein below :?Therefore, we think it seemly to fix reasonable sums. It seems to us that reasonable figures on conventional heads, namely, loss of estate, loss of consortium and funeral expenses should be Rs. 15,000/-, Rs. 40,000/- and Rs. 15,000/- respectively. The principle of revisiting the said heads is an acceptable principle. But the revisit should not be fact-centric or quantum-centric. We think that it would be condign that the amount that we have quantified should be enhanced on percentage basis in every three years and the enhancement should be at the rate of 10% in a span of three years.?(Emphasis supplied)As per the afore-said judgment, the compensation of Rs. 25,000 towards funeral expenses is decreased to Rs.15,000.The amount awarded by the High Court towards loss of love and affection is, however, maintained.9.6 The MACT as well as the High Court have not awarded any compensation with respect to Loss of Consortium and Loss of Estate, which are the other conventional heads under which compensation is awarded in the event of death, as recognized by the Constitution Bench in Pranay Sethi (supra).The Motor Vehicles Act is a beneficial and welfare legislation.The Court is duty-bound and entitled to award ?just compensation?, irrespective of whether any plea in that behalf was raised by the Claimant.In exercise of our power under Article 142, and in the interests of justice, we deem it appropriate to award an amount of Rs. 15,000 towards Loss of Estate to Respondent Nos. 1 and 2.9.7. A Constitution Bench of this Court in Pranay Sethi (supra) dealt with the various heads under which compensation is to be awarded in a death case. One of these heads is Loss of Consortium.In legal parlance, ?consortium? is a compendious term which encompasses ‘spousal consortium?, ‘parental consortium?, and ‘filial consortium?.The right to consortium would include the company, care, help, comfort, guidance, solace and affection of the deceased, which is a loss to his family. With respect to a spouse, it would include sexual relations with the deceased spouse. Rajesh and Ors. vs. Rajbir Singh and Ors. (2013) 9 SCC 54 Spousal consortium is generally defined as rights pertaining to the relationship of a husband-wife which allows compensation to the surviving spouse for loss of ?company, society, co-operation, affection, and aid of the other in every conjugal relation.?Parental consortium is granted to the child upon the premature death of a parent, for loss of ?parental aid, protection, affection, society, discipline, guidance and training.?Filial consortium is the right of the parents to compensation in the case of an accidental death of a child. An accident leading to the death of a child causes great shock and agony to the parents and family of the deceased.The greatest agony for a parent is to lose their child during their lifetime. Children are valued for their love, affection, companionship and their role in the family unit.Consortium is a special prism reflecting changing norms about the status and worth of actual relationships. Modern jurisdictions world-over have recognized that the value of a child?s consortium far exceeds the economic value of the compensation awarded in the case of the death of a child. Most jurisdictions therefore permit parents to be awarded compensation under loss of consortium on the death of a child. The amount awarded to the parents is a compensation for loss of the love, affection, care and companionship of the deceased child.The Motor Vehicles Act is a beneficial legislation aimed at providing relief to the victims or their families, in cases of genuine claims. In case where a parent has lost their minor child, or unmarried son or daughter, the parents are entitled to be awarded loss of consortium under the head of Filial Consortium.Parental Consortium is awarded to children who lose their parents in motor vehicle accidents under the Act.A few High Courts have awarded compensation on this count However, there was no clarity with 5 Rajasthan High Court in Jagmala Ram @ Jagmal Singh & Ors. v. Sohi Ram & Ors 2017 (4) RLW 3368 (Raj) ; Uttarakhand High Court in Smt. Rita Rana & Anr. v. Pradeep Kumar & 6 Ors.2014 (3) UC 1687; Karnataka High Court in Lakshman and Ors. v. Susheela Chand Choudhary & Ors (1996) 3 Kant LJ 570 (DB) respect to the principles on which compensation could be awarded on loss of Filial Consortium.The amount of compensation to be awarded as consortium will be governed by the principles of awarding compensation under ‘Loss of Consortium? as laid down in Pranay Sethi (supra).

Decision (1 = appeal accepted, 0 = rejected): 1

Explanation:
1[ds]Filial consortium is the right of the parents to compensation in the case of an accidental death of a child. An accident leading to the death of a child causes great shock and agony to the parents and family of the deceased.The greatest agony for a parent is to lose their child during their lifetime. Children are valued   for their love, affection, companionship and their role in the family unit.Consortium is a special prism reflecting changing norms about the status and worth of actual relationships. Modern jurisdictions world-over have recognized that the value of a child?s consortium far exceeds the economic value of the compensation awarded in the case of the death of a child. Most jurisdictions therefore permit parents to be awarded compensation under loss of consortium on the death of a   child. The amount awarded to the parents is a compensation for loss of the love, affection, care and companionship of the deceased child.The Motor Vehicles Act is a beneficial legislation aimed at providing relief to the victims or their families, in cases of genuine claims. In case where a parent has lost their minor child, or unmarried son or daughter, the parents are entitled to be awarded loss of consortium under the head of Filial Consortium.Parental Consortium is awarded to children who lose their parents in motor vehicle accidents under the Act.A few High Courts have awarded compensation on  this count However, there was no clarity with 5 Rajasthan High Court in Jagmala Ram @ Jagmal Singh & Ors. v. Sohi Ram & Ors 2017 (4) RLW 3368 (Raj)  ; Uttarakhand High Court in Smt. Rita Rana & Anr. v. Pradeep Kumar & 6 Ors.2014 (3) UC 1687; Karnataka High Court in Lakshman and Ors. v. Susheela Chand Choudhary & Ors (1996) 3 Kant LJ 570 (DB) respect to the principles on which compensation could be awarded on loss of Filial Consortium.The amount of compensation to be awarded as consortium will be governed by the principles of awarding compensation under ‘Loss of Consortium? as laid down in Pranay Sethi (supra).