Case: Sanjay Verma Vs. Haryana Roadways

On 12.08.1998 the appellant-claimant was travelling from Ambala to Kurukshetra in a bus belonging to the Haryana Roadways and bearing registration No. HR-07PA-0197. On the way the driver of the bus lost control over the vehicle resulting in an accident in the course of which the claimant suffered multiple injuries. He was initially treated in the civil hospital Pehwa and thereafter transferred to the PGIMER, Chandigarh on 14.08.1998. The appellant underwent surgery on 16.09.1998 and eventually he was released from the hospital and referred to the Rehabilitation Centre, Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital, Aligarh. According to the claimant, apart from other injuries, he had suffered a fracture of the spinal cord resulting in paralysis of his whole body. In these circumstances the claimant filed an application before the Motor Accident Claim Tribunal claiming compensation of a total sum of Rs.53,00,000/- under different heads enumeratedlossRs. 24,00,000.00(ii)Expenditure incurred in treatment till nowRs. 2,00,000.00(iii)Expenses which shall be incurred in future in treatmentRs. 3,00,000.00(iv)Cost of attendant from the date of accident till he remains aliveRs. 2,00,000.00(v)Passage and diet moneyRs.The learned Tribunal by its Award dated 12.06.2000 held that the accident occurred due to the rash and negligent driving of the bus and that the claimant is entitled to compensation. The total amount due to the claimant was quantified at Rs. 3,00,000/- under the headst of medicalThe learned Tribunal also awarded interest at the rate of 9% from 24.08.1999 i.e. the date of filing of the claim application till date of payment.4. Aggrieved, the claimant filed an appeal before the High Court which enhanced the compensation to Rs.8,08,052/-. The High Court quantified the amount due to the claimant towardsat Rs.6,19,500/-; Rs.1,38,552/- on account ofnd an amount of Rs.50,000/-The High Court, however, reduced the interest payable to 6% per annum from the date of the filing of the application. Aggrieved, this appeal has been filed.

Court's reasoning:
No fault, therefore, can be found in the order of the High Court which proceeds on the basis that the annual income of the claimant at the time of the accident was Rs.41,300/-.into account the age of the claimant (25 years) and the fact that he had a steady income, as evidenced by the income-tax returns, we are of the view that an addition of 50% to the income that the claimant was earning at the time of the accident would be justified.We are of the view that the adoption of the multiplier of 17 would be appropriate. Accordingly, taking into account the addition to the income and the higher multiplier the total amount of compensation payable to the claimant under the headis Rs. 10,53,150/- (Rs. 41300 + Rs. 20650= Rs. 61,950 x 17).Accordingly, the finding of the High Court in this regard iswill, therefore, have to severe the two heads which have been clubbed together by the High Court.In so far asis concerned we have no doubt that the claimant will be required to take treatment from time to time even to maintain the present condition of his health. In fact, the claimant in his deposition has stated that he is undergoing treatment at the Apollo Hospital at Delhi. Though it is not beyond our powers to award compensation beyond what has been claimed [Nagappa vs. Gurudayal Singh and others [(2003) 2 SCC 274] ], in the facts of the present case we are of the view that the grant of full compensation, as claimed in the claim petition i.e. Rs.3,00,000/- under the head, would meet the ends of justice. We, therefore, order accordingly.19. The claimant had claimed an amount of Rs.20,00,000/- under the headng and mentalConsidering the injuries sustained by the claimant which had left him paralyzed for life and the evidence of PW-1 to the effect that the claimant is likely to suffer considerable pain throughout his life, we are of the view that the claimant should be awarded a further sum of Rs. 3,00,000/- on account ofWe must, however, acknowledge that monetary compensation forng is at best a palliative, the correct dose of which, in the last analysis, will have to be determined on a case to casethe aforesaid materials, we are satisfied that the claim made on this count is justified and the amount of Rs.2,00,000/- claimed by the claimant under the aforesaid head should be awarded in full. We order