Gujarat High Court
Rajeshbhai Govindbhai Kharwal vs Balwantbhai Kavraji Ode on 16 June, 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/FA/3654/2024 ORDER DATED: 16/06/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/FIRST APPEAL NO. 3654 of 2024
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RAJESHBHAI GOVINDBHAI KHARWAL
Versus
BALWANTBHAI KAVRAJI ODE & ORS.
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Appearance:
JATIN S SHERAWAT(9173) for the Appellant(s) No. 1
MR HARSH R JOSHI(12752) for the Defendant(s) No. 1,2
MR RATHIN P RAVAL(5013) for the Defendant(s) No. 3
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MS. JUSTICE NISHA M. THAKORE
Date : 16/06/2025
ORAL ORDER
1. The present appeal is filed under section 173 of the
Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 at the instance of the original
claimant.
2. Being aggrieved and dissatisfied with the judgment and
order dated 17.11.2021 passed by the Motor Accident Claims
Tribunal, Vadodara in MACP No. 598 of 2017. By the said
impugned judgment and award, the Tribunal has partly
allowed the claim petition by awarding Rs. 2,77,700/- with
interest @ 9% p.a. and cost as against the claim of
Rs.6,00,000/- with interest and cost.
3. I have heard learned advocate Mr. Jatin S. Sherawat
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for the appellant and learned advocate Mr. Rathin P. Raval
who has appeared on behalf of respondent No.3. Mr. Harsh
R. Joshi, learned advocate has appeared appearance on behalf
of respondents No.1 and 2.
4. Learned advocate for the appellant has confined his
submission seeking enhancement of amount of compensation
essentially under the head of loss of future prospectus.
Assailing the impugned judgment and award on the aforesaid
ground, learned advocate for the appellant has submitted that
despite the original salary slip of the applicant being
produced on record at Exh.26, the Tribunal has refused to be
read as evidence despite the same being not objected by the
respondent - insurance company. While refusing to accept the
case of the claimant for an amount of Rs.9,000/- as reflected
in the salary slip, the Tribunal has noted that the claimant
has not examined the competent employer from the company
to establish the salary slip. It is further recorded that the
salary slip which is placed on record at Exh. 26, the name
of the signatory is hand written in the column of the
signature of the employee and no signature of the
representative has been mentioned in the pay slip. Hence,
the Tribunal has found the service with the company as
doubtful and prima facie not being proved and has thereby
arrived at an erroneous conclusion that the applicant has
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failed to prove his income. However, without assigning any
further reason, the Tribunal has treated an amount of
Rs.5,500/- as just and proper to assess the monthly income.
The reliance was placed on the original record and
proceedings to point out the original pay slip of the applicant
produced on record at Exh.26. According to learned advocate
in absence of any contradiction being raised as regards the
aforesaid documents, the Tribunal ought to have accepted it
as a proof of the monthly income of the applicant. Learned
advocate has further submitted that looking to the age of the
applicant, the correct multiplier to be adopted was 17 and
not 16 as considered by the Tribunal. He has further
submitted that the Tribunal has failed to consider the
prospective loss of income by relying on the decision of the
Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of National Insurance
Company Limited versus Pranay Shethi reported in (2017) 16
SCC 680. He has therefore prayed for the enhancement of
the amount of compensation under the aforesaid ground of
future loss of income.
5. Learned advocate Mr. Rathin P. Raval appearing for the
respondent - insurance company has mainly relied upon the
findings and reasons assigned by the Tribunal and has
submitted that in absence of any representation of the
employer being examined, the Tribunal has rightly not found
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it fit to have been proved. Learned advocate has therefore
submitted that in absence of any signature of the authorised
officer of the company being found in the printed form, the
Tribunal has rightly raised its doubt over the document. In
absence of any representative of the employer being
examined, the Tribunal has refused to consider it as a proof
of income however, learned advocate has leave it to the court
to consider appropriate income looking to the facts of the
case. As regards the submission made by the learned
advocate for the appropriate multiplier of 17 to be applied
and the future prospective loss of income is concerned, the
same being in light of the settled principles of law, he is
unable to contradict the same.
6. Considering the aforesaid submissions of the learned
advocates appearing for the respective parties and having
perused the findings and reasons assigned by the learned
Judge in light of the record and proceedings, no error can be
found in the observations of the learned Judge as regards
the salary slip produced on record at Exh. 26. On bare
perusal of the aforesaid salary slip, it transpires that the
same is not duly signed by any authorised person of the
company. Indisputably, no representative of the company has
been examined, however the fact remains that as rightly
pointed out by the learned advocate for the applicant, the
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claimant has been duly examined on the aforesaid aspect.
The claimant has been cross examined whereby he has
admitted that he has not produced on record any document
verifying the acknowledgment of the salary being received by
him from "Atmiya Enterprise". In absence of any document of
proof of income, this court is left out to do guess work about
the income of the applicant. In the case of Govind Yadav Vs.
New India Insurance Co. Ltd. 2011 (10) SCC 683, the
Hon'ble Supreme Court has reiterated the importance of
minimum wages to be considered in assessing the notional
income.
7. Considering the minimum wages prevailing at the time
of the date of the accident i.e. 12.07.2017, the net pay
considered in the case of skilled worker is Rs.8,388/- per
month. I am inclined to consider the income of the applicant
as Rs.8,000/- p.m. Having held so, as regards the issue of
multiplier adopted by the Tribunal and the future prospective
loss of income is concerned, it is settled legal position as
pointed out by learned advocate for the applicant.
8. Looking at the age of the applicant being less than 30
years, multiplier of 17 is applied. Considering the fact that
the applicant is not permanently employed and in view of
the principles laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in
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the case of Pranay Shethi (supra), the prospective income of
the deceased is considered as 40% of the aforesaid income
being determined.
9. Thus, the future loss of income is determined as
Rs.8,000/- X 40% = 3,200 + 8,000 = Rs.11,200/-. For the
aforesaid reasons, the appeal succeeds. The amount of
compensation is assessed as Rs.11,200 x 12 x 17 x 20% =
Rs.4,56,960/-. Further, the actual loss of income for 3 months
is assessed as Rs.8,000 X 3 = Rs. 24,000/-.
10. The applicant is thus held entitled to recover total
amount of compensation of Rs.4,80,960/- with interest @ 9%
p.a. from the date of claim petition till its realisation along
with proportionate cost to be realised from the respondents
jointly and severally.
11. For the foregoing reasons, the appeal is allowed. The
impugned Judgment and Award dated 17.11.2021 passed by
Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Vadodara in MACP No. 598
of 2017 is modified and the claimants are held entitled to
enhanced amount of compensation to the tune of Rs.2,03,260/-
(Rs.4,80,960 - Rs.2,77,700) with 9% interest from the date of
filing of claim petition till its realisation. The amount of
interim compensation paid under section 140 of the Motor
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Vehicles Act shall be adjusted from the aforesaid amount of
compensation determined. By this order the respondents are
directed to deposit the amount of compensation as determined
by this court with interest and proportionate cost within a
period of 8 weeks from the date of the receipt of this order.
The deficit amount of court fees if to be recovered, the same
shall be done before the disbursement and release of the
awarded amount.
12. Noticing the fact that the accident relates to the year
2017, the entire awarded amount is directed to be released
in favour of the claimant subject to due verification, strictly
in terms of the guidelines prescribed by the Hon'ble Supreme
Court in this regard.
13. With this observations, the appeal stands disposed of.
14. Record & Proceedings to be sent back to the concerned
Tribunal forthwith.
(NISHA M. THAKORE,J)
MAYA
