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2012 DIGILAW 129 (RAJ)

Babu Lal v. Ajmer Singh

2012-01-10

MAHESH BHAGWATI

body2012
Hon'ble BHAGWATI, J.—Challenge in this appeal is to the award dated 17th August, 2011 whereby the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (F.T.) No.6, Jaipur City, Jaipur decreed an amount of Rs.28,300/- in favour of the appellant and against the respondents. 2. Aggrieved with the said decreetal amount, the appellant has implored to enhance the quantum of compensation and pass an award of Rs.12,30,000/- afresh in his favour. 3. Adumbrated in brief, the facts of the case are that on 5th March 2008, the appellant-claimant along with his friend Shyoji Ram was going on a Motor-cycle RJ-14-29M-4120 from Gopalpura Bye Pass, towards his residence at Pitamber Nagar. No sooner did he reach at about 4.30 PM near Badarwas Tiraha, one Truck bearing registration No.RJ-14-GB-2572 came from the back. The driver of the Truck, having driven the truck, suddenly emerged at a fast speed, lost the control over the vehicle and hit the Motor-cycle, as a result of which Babu Lal sustained grievous injuries on his person. 4. Heard the learned counsel for the appellant and carefully perused the relevant material on record including the impugned award. 5. Learned counsel for the appellant has assailed the impugned award only on one ground that the disability certificate of the injured Babu Lal was not considered by the learned Tribunal for the reason that it was issued by a Board of Private Hospital. 6. Learned counsel canvassed that it was mentioned no-where under Rule 10.2 of the Rajasthan Motor Vehicles Rules, 1990 that the disability certificate of any injured was required to be issued by a Medical Officer of the Government Hospital. Under Rule 10.2 of the Rajasthan Motor Vehicles Rules, 1990, the proforma of the medical certificate is also given and the said proforma also does not suggest that the Medical Certificate would be issued by a Medical Officer of the Government Hospital only. Hence, the ground on the basis of which, the learned Tribunal did not consider the disability certificate issued by S.K. Soni Hospital was contrary to law and arbitrary, which needs rectification. 7. Learned counsel further canvassed that the disability certificate issued by the Medical Officer of S.K.Soni Hospital should be considered and the amount of compensation, after re-computation be appropriately enhanced. 8. 7. Learned counsel further canvassed that the disability certificate issued by the Medical Officer of S.K.Soni Hospital should be considered and the amount of compensation, after re-computation be appropriately enhanced. 8. During arguments some of the Advocates appearing on behalf of the Insurance Companies drew my attention towards the order of Coordinate Bench whereby the Coordinate Bench had granted stay on the use of disability certificate issued by the Private Hospitals. 9. Having laid my hands on the order passed by this Court in the case of United Insurance Company Limited vs. Smt. Kamla Devi and Ors. rendered in S.B.C.M.A.No.6396, it is noticed that the learned counsel for the appellant-Insurance Co. argued in this case that there was a racket going on in Dhanwantri Life Care Pvt. Ltd. 67/56-A New Sanganer Road, Mansarovar, Jaipur and SK Soni Hospital, Vidhyadhar Nagar, Jaipur which was indiscriminately issuing bogus disability certificates (that) assessing disability of the claimants much in excess of the actual disability and in some cases, even without any disability at all and the Tribunals /Workmen Compensation Commissioners on that basis had been liberally granting compensation. This was a serious allegation and such practice ought not to be therefore, allowed to go on any further. This Court having considered the arguments of the learned counsel for the appellant-Insurance Co. and perused the circular issued by the Medical & Health (Group-2) Department, Government of Rajasthan dated 29th June, 2010 whereby the Government of Rajasthan had issued instructions that such disability certificates could be issued only by the Medical Board consisting of three Doctors of the Government Hospital, issued the following direction to all the Motor Accident Claims Tribunals situated at Jaipur in the following terms: “All the Motor Accident Claims Tribunals at Jaipur and the Employee's Compensation Commissioner, Jaipur District-I, II & III as well as Jaipur City, at Shanti Nagar, Opposite NBC Hasanpura, Jaipur are henceforth directed not to accept or rely on any such disability certificates issued by Private Hospitals including above referred to two hospitals in any claim petition and insist on the claimants to obtain the disability certificate from the duly constituted medical board of the government hospital as per the circulars of the Government of Rajasthan dated 29/10/2010 and 19/8/2011 and the Notification issued by the Ministry of social Justice & Empowerment Department, Government of India, New Delhi dated 30/12/2009.” 10. In view of the above directions of this Court rendered in the case of United Insurance Company Limited (supra), the learned Tribunal rightly did not rely on the said disability certificate issued by the Medical Officer of the S.K.Soni Hospital. Additional Director of Medical & Health Services, Rajasthan Jaipur is also found to have registered objections against issuing false and hypothetical disability certificates by the Doctors of Private Hospitals illegally. The Department is found to have observed that some Private Hospitals had illegally organized and formed a racket just with a view to cause wrongful gain to the victims of the Motor accidents by way of issuing false and forged disability certificates. Hence, the Additional Director, in order to curb this malpractice, also issued the directions that the Motor accidents victims should obtain disability certificates from the Government Hospital and not from Private Hospitals. Otherwise too, the Private Hospitals are neither answerable to the Medical & Health Department nor accountable to any Government agency, hence in the present scenario, where the moral and ethical values of the persons have gone down to an unimaginable extent, the credibility of such persons, issuing the disability certificates, comes to halt and becomes questionable. Since they are not being controlled by any Government agency and they are accountable/answerable to none, hence, the certificates issued by them, cannot be considered and relied upon for the purpose of computing the amount of compensation in Motor Accident Claims Cases. 11. In view of above, the impugned order is found to be just and proper and suffers from no infirmity and thus, the appeal being devoid of any substance deserves to be dismissed at the threshold. 12. For these reasons, the appeal fails and the same being bereft of any merit stands dismissed in limine.