New Delhi, Jan 22 (PTI) A tribunal here has awarded Rs 1 crore as compensation to the family of a Uttar Pradesh police constable who died in a road accident in Aligarh last year.
Holding the insurer liable to pay the full compensation amount, the tribunal noted the offending vehicle was duly insured on the date of the accident and the insurance company failed to establish any statutory defence.
Presiding Officer Pooja Agarwal of the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal in Delhi was hearing a petition filed by the wife, parents and minor children of Dinesh Kumar, who was killed in the accident.
On the morning of January 13, 2024, Kumar was returning to his house from work on his motorcycle when a rash driven car hit his motorcycle from behind on Mathura Bypass Flyover. He was flung on the ground, due to which he sustained injuries. He was taken to J N Medical College, Aligarh where he was declared brought dead.
“It is held that on the scale of preponderance of probability, the petitioners have discharged their burden and proved that the deceased Dinesh Kumar suffered fatal injuries in an accident that took place on January 13 involving vehicle driven by the respondent,” the tribunal said in its judgment dated January 19, relying on the testimony of an eyewitness and the police chargesheet .
The insurance company contended that the offending vehicle was falsely implicated as its vehicle number was not mentioned in the First Information Report (FIR) initially, and only one eye-witness had been examined in the court, whose statement itself was recorded at a much later date.
The tribunal rebutted, “The mere fact that initially the FIR was registered against an unknown vehicle, does not have disprove the involvement of the offending vehicle as an FIR is not expected to be an encyclopedia of all facts, and if certain facts including the identity of the offending vehicle is discovered during investigation by the investigating authority, the same cannot be discarded merely on the ground of it not being mentioned in the FIR.” The tribunal also took note that neither the driver nor the owner of the offending vehicle ever stepped into the witness box to dispute the facts of the case or set up any defence.
“There is not even a whisper in respect of the accident being a result of any act or omission on the part of the deceased. There is no evidence on record, not even in the form of a suggestion as to the accident having resulted due to any rashness or negligence on the part of the deceased,” the tribunal said.
The tribunal also noted the cause of death in the post-mortem report was recorded to be “haemorrhagic shock due to antemortem injuries”, which is consistent with the injuries resulting from the road traffic accident.
Considering Kumar was only 37 years old, the sole breadwinner of the family, and was serving as a constable in the Uttar Pradesh Police at the time of the accident, the tribunal awarded over Rs. 1 crore as compensation under various heads, including Rs. 97.38 lakh towards loss of dependency. PTI MDB — SKY SKY
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