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2016 DIGILAW 185 (HP)

Jagmohan Singh v. Oriental Insurance Company Ltd.

2016-03-04

MANSOOR AHMAD MIR

body2016
JUDGMENT : Mansoor Ahmad Mir, Chief Justice (Oral) 1. This appeal is directed against the award, dated 3rd August, 2009, passed by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Fast Track Court, Shimla, (for short, the Tribunal), in Claim Petition No.46-R/2 of 2008/05, titled Sumitra Devi and others vs. Amrit and others, whereby compensation to the tune of Rs.3,57,000/- with interest at the rate of 9% per annum from the date of filing of the claim petition till realization, came to be awarded in favour of the claimants and the insured came to be saddled with the liability, (for short, the impugned award). 2. The insurer, the claimants and the driver have not questioned the impugned award on any ground, thus, the same has attained finality so far as it relates to them. 3. Feeling aggrieved, the owner/insured has questioned the impugned award on the ground that the Tribunal has fallen in an error in discharging the insurer from its liability. 4. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties and have gone through the record. 3. Insurance Policy of the offending vehicle has been proved on record as Ext.RW-1/A, which discloses that the “Passenger Carrying Capacity” of the offending vehicle was “4+1”. The Registration Certificate of the vehicle is Ext.RE-1/B, wherein also the seating capacity of the offending vehicle, including the driver, has been mentioned as “4+1”. 4. It is an admitted fact that the deceased was traveling in the offending vehicle at the time of accident. Once the offending vehicle was duly insured and the ‘passenger carrying capacity’ of the vehicle, as is discussed above, has been mentioned to be “4+1” in the insurance policy i.e. Ext.RW-1/A, the insurer cannot escape from its liability. 5. The insurer has not pleaded and proved that the insured/owner had committed any willful breach of the terms and conditions contained in the insurance policy or the mandate of Sections 147 and 149 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. 6. As a sequel of the above discussion, the appeal succeeds and the impugned award is modified to the extent that the insurer is saddled with the liability. 6. As a sequel of the above discussion, the appeal succeeds and the impugned award is modified to the extent that the insurer is saddled with the liability. The insurer is directed to deposit the amount alongwith up-to-date interest, as awarded by the Tribunal, in the Registry of this Court within a period of eight weeks from today and on deposit, the Registry is directed to release the amount in favour of the claimants, strictly in terms of the impugned award. The amount alongwith interest accrued thereon, deposited by the insured/appellant be paid to the claimants as costs.