The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT), Panchkula, has awarded about ₹31 lakh to two families from Punjab and Assam, which lost their members in a road accident in 2018.
The family from Punjab comprises Nagina Parsad and his wife Durga from Harbanspur village in Kapurthala. The couple had lost their 23-year-old son Paramjit Parsad.
The Assam family includes Sampa Sarkar, wife of the other victim Durlov Sarkar, 42, her two minor children, and mother-in-law.
They had filed a complaint against truck driver Vishal Chauhan, owner of the truck Kuldeep Thakur from Himachal Pradesh’s Bilaspur, and vehicle’s insurance company Shri Ram General Insurance Company Limited, Jaipur, Rajasthan.
As per the petitioners, on December 21, 2018, Paramjit and Durlov were going to Baddi in Himachal Pradesh on a motorcycle. Paramjit’s father Nagina was following them in a separate vehicle.
Around 7am, as they reached near Kona village Panchkula, a speeding truck hit their motorcycle, resulting in the death of Paramjit and Durlov.
While Paramjit was employed in a factory in Kalka and earning ₹35,000 per month, Durlov was working as a supervisor at ₹40,000 per month salary.
{{/usCountry}}While Paramjit was employed in a factory in Kalka and earning ₹35,000 per month, Durlov was working as a supervisor at ₹40,000 per month salary.
{{/usCountry}}Both the driver and owner of the truck denied any accident and claimed that a false FIR was registered.
The insurance company stated that the driver of the vehicle involved was not holding a valid and effective driving licence at the time of alleged accident and that insured had violated the terms and conditions of the insurance policy.
It was also pleaded that the alleged accident had taken place due to sole negligence of the driver of the motorcycle.
After hearing both the parties, the tribunal awarded total compensation of ₹30.78 lakh to the two families, of which ₹14.03 lakh will go to the family of Paramjit and ₹16.75 lakh to the family of Durlov.
The tribunal directed that all the respondents being driver, owner and insurer of the offending vehicle are jointly and severally liable to pay the compensation.