The motor accident claims tribunal on Friday ordered a motorcyclist, the bike’s owner and its insurer to pay ₹12 lakh to the family of a migrant worker who died after a motorcycle hit him on the Chandigarh-Ambala highway in 2023.
Presiding officer Atul Kasana pronounced the award on October 30, 2026, in the petition filed by Sonamati Devi, her son Visheshwar Yadav and her daughter Reema Yadav. The family lives in Hadiha Khurd village, Ballia district, Uttar Pradesh. They had sought ₹60 lakh.
Parlahd Yadav, also called Prahlad Yadav, was 48. He was walking from Lehli towards Lalru on August 2, 2023, when a motorcycle bearing registration HR-01-AV-6530 struck him from behind near the Jhilmil river. He fell, hit his head on the roadside and suffered serious injuries. Police and bystanders took him to civil hospital, Dera Bassi, which referred him to GMCH-32 in Chandigarh. He succumbed to injuries on August 4.
Eyewitness Rinku Ram told the tribunal that he saw the motorcycle hit Yadav, noted its registration number and helped take the injured man to hospital. Police registered FIR 115 at Lalru police station under Sections 279 and 304-A of the IPC on his statement. The rider fled the spot, but police later arrested Tarun, seized the motorcycle and charge-sheeted him.
Tarun and the bike’s owner, Kartik, denied the accident and said police had falsely implicated them. Liberty General Insurance argued the claim was time-barred, that Yadav’s family had no connection to the tribunal’s jurisdiction, and that the rider held no valid licence. It also suggested a hit-and-run by an unknown vehicle or Yadav’s own negligence.
{{/usCountry}}Tarun and the bike’s owner, Kartik, denied the accident and said police had falsely implicated them. Liberty General Insurance argued the claim was time-barred, that Yadav’s family had no connection to the tribunal’s jurisdiction, and that the rider held no valid licence. It also suggested a hit-and-run by an unknown vehicle or Yadav’s own negligence.
{{/usCountry}}The tribunal rejected these arguments. Kasana found Rinku Ram’s testimony reliable and noted that Tarun did not enter the witness box or call any witness. He said Tarun never complained to senior police officers about a false case.
The family did not prove Yadav worked in Punjab and his Aadhaar card showed Uttar Pradesh residence. The tribunal therefore used the Uttar Pradesh minimum wage for unskilled labour, ₹10,089 a month. It added 25% for future prospects, raising monthly income to ₹12,611, and deducted half for personal expenses. Applying a multiplier of 13, it fixed loss of dependency at ₹9,83,658.
The tribunal added ₹1,45,200 for filial consortium and ₹18,150 each for loss of estate and funeral expenses, in line with the Supreme Court’s (SC) ruling in the Pranay Sethi case.
The three respondents must pay jointly and severally, with 7.5% annual interest from the date of filing the petition until payment. The insurer must indemnify the owner. Any no-fault liability amount the family has received will be deducted.
Sonamati Devi will receive 70% of the award. Visheshwar and Reema will each receive 15%.