HC upholds MACT order of ₹89L relief to Mohali man
The HC bench of justice Amarjot Bhatti dismissed the plea from insurance firm, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Co Ltd., arguing that the compensation awarded to the claimants was excessive and without justification
The Punjab and Haryana high court (HC) has upheld the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) order of awarding ₹89 lakh compensation to a Mohali-based tailor, who had suffered permanent disability in a road mishap in 2017.
The HC bench of justice Amarjot Bhatti dismissed the plea from insurance firm, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Co Ltd., arguing that the compensation awarded to the claimants was excessive and without justification.
The firm, while challenging the February 16 order of MACT, had also argued that there was a delay in lodging the FIR, and alleged that the said vehicle was never involved in the accident.
The mishap took place on August 4, 2017, when Mohammad Rafiq, 50, a tailor was going to Chandigarh on his scooter for some work. When he reached near the roundabout of YPS School, a Swift car allegedly came at a very high speed and hit the scooter, leaving him critically injured.
An FIR was lodged on August 16 at Mataur police station as the driver of the vehicle allegedly did not pay up as promised at the time of accident.
The victim had allegedly suffered 100% permanent disability of his brain and lost his speech. As he was the sole breadwinner of the family, a compensation of ₹1 crore was claimed.
The HC did not agree with the claims of the insurance firm and said that one Ram Singh Yadav, eyewitness to the accident, had supported the facts. Another witness, Hussain Noor, had initially supported the facts of the case but later resiled from his statement. These facts clearly indicate that Noor was won over. The delay in lodging the FIR was also well-explained by the claimant, it said, adding that in view of this, no interference of the MACT order was required.
The court further said that though there is no income tax return or direct evidence to prove the financial status of the tailor, the MACT took into account the rent agreement of the shop and the fact that his three children were going to different institutes and were studying when their father met with an accident. The court also examined the bank passbook of the tailor. The MACT has rightly assessed his monthly income as ₹35,000, it said.
The court recorded that since the tailor has suffered 100% functional disability, the tribunal has rightly assessed the compensation, considering the nature of ailment and that the injured would require attendant for whole of the time.
