The division judge bench of Justice Krishna Murari and Justice S.Ravindra Bhatt of the supreme court of India in the case of Mohd. Sabeer @ Shabeer Hussain Vs Regional manager, U.P. State road transport corporation held that to preserve the essence of justice, it becomes the duty of the Court to at the very least restore the claimant as best as possible to the position he was in before the occurrence of the disability, and to do so must award compensation in a liberal manner.
BRIEF FACTS
The factual matrix of the case is that the driver of the bus in which the appellant was traveling was driving in a rash and negligent manner. The Respondent no.1 driver hit a standing tempo which was parked on the left side of the road. As a result of this accident, the appellant and the other passengers in the bus received grave injuries all over their bodies. The appellant was aged 37 years at the time of the accident and was earning Rs.10,000/- per month.
As per the Disability Certificate, the appellant suffered permanent disability of 70%, his right lower limb amongst other injuries. thereafter, the appellant filed a claim before the motor accident claim tribunal claiming a compensation of rupees 20,00,000.the tribunal awarded the compensation of rupees Rs.15,76,465/- to the Appellant along with 7.5% interest per annum.
Thereafter. The appeal was filed before the high court on the ground that the tribunal didn't calculate the loss of earning capacity, future prospects and wrong computation of the Appellant’s disability. The high court enhanced the compensation to Rs.16,70,932/- with 9% interest per annum.
The learned counsel appearing on behalf of the appellant has contended that the high court has wrongly assessed the appellants loss of income due to disability to be only 35% while the medical board has assessed the petitioner's permanent disability to be 70%. Furthermore, it was submitted that the compensation granted for the repair, purchase and maintenance of the Artificial leg is inadequate. The learned counsel further relied upon the judgement titled Anant son of Sidheshwar Dukre Vs. Pratap son of Zhamnnappa Lamzane & Anr.
The learned counsel appearing on behalf of the respondent has contended that the high court has rightly concluded the disabilities as 35%. It was also submitted before the apex court that The High Court has rightly not granted future prospects as the Income Tax Returns of the Appellant has increased despite disability caused from Rs. 1,26,947/- to Rs.1,67,147/-.
COURT'S OBSERVATION
The hon'ble court held that it is almost universally seen that persons from marginalized backgrounds often face an additional layer of discrimination due to bodily disabilities. This is because persons from marginalized sections of the society already face severe discrimination due to a lack of social capital, and a new disability more often than not compounds to such discrimination. In such circumstances, to preserve the essence of justice, it becomes the duty of the Court to at the very least restore the claimant as best as possible to the position he was in before the occurrence of the disability, and to do so must award compensation in a liberal manner.
While no material compensation can completely negate the trauma and suffering that the injured and his family faces, the law only knows the language of monetary compensation in such cases. It then becomes to duty of the court to translate the provisions of monetary compensation into a fabrication that helps the injured and his family in coping with their loss.
The supreme court awarded the compensation of Rs 38,70,120/- along with 9% interest per annum to the appellant.
CASE NAME- Mohd. Sabeer @ Shabeer Hussain Vs Regional manager, U.P. State road transport corporation
CITATION- CIVIL APPEAL NOS. 9070-9071 OF 2022
(Arising out of Special Leave Petition (Civil) Nos. 481-482 of 2019)
CORUM- Justice Krishna Murari and Justice S.Ravindra Bhatt
DATE- 09.12.22
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