Case: Sheikhupura Transport Co. Ltd Vs. Northern India Transport Insurance Co

1. A passenger bus belonging to the appellant while travelling from Ludhiana to Raikot met with an accident at about 9 a. m. on February 11, 1959. As a result of this accident, two persons namely Bachan Singh and Narinder Nath died on the spot and some others received minor injuries. The legal representatives of the deceased persons applied for compensation before the tribunal appointed under the Motor Vehicles Act. Their claim was opposed by the appellant as well as by the insurance company. Overruling the objections of the appellant as well as the insurance company, the tribunal found that the accident was due to the negilgence of the driver and therefore the claimants were entitled to compensation. The tribunal computed the compensation due to the legal representatives of Bachan Singh at Rs.Out of that sum it determined the compensation due to the widow at Rs.to his daughter Harbans Kaur and Rs. 6,000/to his another daughter Balbir Kaur. But as the daughters had not made their claims within the prescribed time, it disallowed the compensation due to them and only granted a decree in favour of the widow of Bachan Singh. In the case of Narinder Nath, it computed the total compensation payable at Rs. 18,000/and granted that sum to the legal representatives of Narinder Nath. It directed that the entire sum payable by the appellant should be paid by the insurance company. The insurance company as well as the legal representatives of the deceased persons appealed to the High Court. The High Court enhanced the compensation payable to the legal representatives of both Bachan Singh and Narinder Nath from Rs. 18,000/It condoned the delay in making the claim by the daughters of Bachan Singh and consequently made the entire sum payable to his legal representatives. It also allowed the appeal of the insurance company and limited the amount payable by the insurance company to Rs. 2,000/in the case of each one of the deceased persons. Aggrieved by the decision of the High Court, these appeals have been brought by special leave.

Reasoning: 2. Now coming to the enhancement made by the High Court both Bachan Singh and Narinder Nath were 42 to 43 years old at the time of their death; both the tribunal and the High Court have come to the conclusion that Bachan Singh had annual income of about Rs.Out of Rs.was his income from immovable property; that income continued to accrue to the benefit of his wife and children; therefore only the income other than the income from immovable property which Bachan Singh was earring from his contract was taken into consideration. The High Court has come to the conclusion that Bachan Singh must have been spending at least Rs. 200/on his family every month. It must be remembered mat Bachan Singh had to marry two daughters. Therefore whatever he might have been able to save after meeting the family expenses and his own the same would have been utilised for the marriage expenses of the daughters. Both the tribunal and the High Court have computed the loss to the family of Bachan Singh by capitalising the benefit that the family was getting from him during his lifetime. The High Court did not accept the computation of the tribunal that Bachan Singh would have spent only Rs. 100/on his family during his lifetime. We think the High Court was right in its conclusion. Taking into consideration the total income of Bachan Singh as well as the requirements of the family, it is reasonable to hold that he would have spent at least Rs. 200/per month on his family. We cannot also overlook the fact that Bachan Singh in all reasonable possibility would have been able to earn more in the years to come, if he had not died.3. It is true that Bachan Singhs daughters were not made parties to the petition filed by the widow of Bachan Singh, when she filed that petition, but later on they were impleaded. By the time they were impleaded, the time for filing application for compensation by the daughters had elapsed. It is conceded that under law, the tribunal had jurisdiction to condone the delay in making the claim. The tribunal had not chosen to condone the delay. But the High Court has in its discretion condone the delay. It is seen that the wife of Bachan Singh was an illiterate lady. She appears to have been quite helpless. In fact in her petition she specifically stated that she had no assistance and therefore she requested the court to give her the assistance of some lawyer. We do not think that we will be justified in interfering with the discretion exercised by the High Court in condoning the delay in question.4. In the case of Narinder Nath, the evidence adduced on behalf of the claimants clearly establishes that he was earning about Rs. 6,000/per year as Commission Agent and that his income was going up from year to year. But yet the tribunal thought that his income could be computed at Rs. 5,000/per year. There was no basis for such a conclusion. Further the tribunal held that Narinder Nath must have been spending about Rs. 100/per month on his family. This conclusion is a wholly fallacious one. The evidence disclosed that he was spending on his family about two to three hundred rupees a month. The High Court has arrived at the conclusion that he must have been spending Rs. 200/per month on his family. Here again it may be noted that he had the prospect of earning more in the years to come and consequently he would have spent more on his family if he had lived longer. On the basis that he was spending about Rs. 200/per month on his fondly, the High Court has computed the total compensation at Rs.It has computed the compensation on the basis of 15 years purchase of the benefits that were accruing to the family as in the case of Bachan Singh.Under section 110B ofthe Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 the tribunal is required to fix such compensation which appears to it to be just. The power given to the tribunal in the matter of fixing compensation under that provision is wide. Even if we assume (we do not propose to decide that question in this case) that compensation under that provision has to be fixed on the same basis as is required to be done under Fatal Accidents Act, 1855 (Act 13 of 1855), the pecuniary loss to the aggrieved party would depend upon data which cannot be ascertained accurately but must necessarily be an estimate or even partly a conjecture. The general principle is that the pecuniary loss can be ascertained only by balancing on the one hand the loss to the claimants of the future pecuniary benefit and on the other any pecuniary advanced which from whatever sources come to them by reason of the death, that is, the balance of loss and gain to a dependant by the death must be ascertainedSee Gobald Motor Service Ltd. v. R. M. K. Veluswami (1962) 1 SCR 929  = (AIR 1962 SC 1 ).The determination of the question of compensation depends on several imponderables. In the assessment of those imponderables, there is likely to be a margin of error. If the assessment made by the High Court cannot be considered to be unreasonableand we do not think it to be unreasonableit will not be proper for this Court to interfere with the same. Taking an overall assessment of the facts and circumstances of this case, we are unable to agree with the contention of the appellants Counsel that the compensation awarded to the legal representatives of the deceased persons is excessive. Nor are we able to accept the contention that the High Court erred in condoning the delay in the matter of the claim made by the daughters of Bachanmeasure of liability of the insurer has to be as certained with reference to Section 95 (2) of the Motor Vehicles Act. Section 94 of that Act requires that every passenger bus should be insured against third party risk. Section 95 (1) prescribes the requirement of policies. The provision relevant for our present purpose is S. 95 (2).In the present case we are dealing with a vehicle in which more than six passengers were allowed to be carried. Hence the maximum liability impose under S. 95 (2) on the insurer is Rs. 2,000/per passenger though the total liability may go upto Rs.This is also the view taken by the High Court. The limit of insurer prescribed under S. 95 (2) (b) of the Motor Vehicles Act can be enhanced by any contract to the contrary.The opening words of this clause "subject to the limit of liability the Company" evidently refer to the limit prescribed under S. 95 (2) (b) of the Motor Vehicles Act. No clause in the insurance policy specifically providing for the payment of any amount higher than that fixed under S. 95 (2) (b) was brought to our notice. The clause dealing with avoidance of certain terms and the right of recoveryin this policy or any endorsement thereon shall affect the right of any person indemnified by this policy or any other person to recover an amount under or by virtue of the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act 1939, Section 96".This clause makes it abundantly clear that the extent of the right of the person indemnified is as prescribed in S. 96 of the Motor Vehicles Act. Under that provision the amount to be recovered is that covered by cl. (b) of(1) of S. 95. Clause (b) of S. 95 (1)