Smt. Sudhadevi Agrawal vs Vijay Kumar Yadav
2023 Latest Caselaw 12740 MP

                                                          1
                            IN     THE     HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH
                                                AT JABALPUR
                                                      BEFORE
                                        HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE VIVEK AGARWAL
                                               ON THE 8 th OF AUGUST, 2023
                                              MISC. APPEAL No. 2689 of 2022

                           BETWEEN:-
                           1.    SMT.  SUDHADEVI AGRAWAL W/O      LATE
                                 RAMBABU AGRAWAL, AGED ABOUT 62 YEARS,
                                 OCCUPATION:  UNEMPLOYED   R/O   UTTAM
                                 ASSOCIATED BEHIND CHRIST JYOTI SCHOOL
                                 BHARHUT NAGAR SATNA, DISTT. SATNA
                                 (MADHYA PRADESH)

                           2.    SHRI UTTAM KUMAR AGRAWAL S/O LATE
                                 RAMBABU AGRAWAL, AGED ABOUT 38 YEARS,
                                 OCCUPATION:   BUSINESS   R/O    UTTAM
                                 ASSOCIATES BEHIND CHRIST JYOTI SCHOOL
                                 BHARHUT NAGAR SATNA DISTT SATNA (M.P.)
                                 (MADHYA PRADESH)

                                                                                   .....APPELLANTS
                           (BY SHRI RAJAS POHANKAR - ADVOCATE)

                           AND
                           1.    VIJAY KUMAR YADAV S/O SHRI MAHENDRA
                                 YAD AV R/O VILLAGE PURA P.S.BADH , DISTT.
                                 PATNA (BIHAR)

                           2.    MANAGER/     OWNER M/S PRAGATI LOGISTIC
                                 PRIVATE    LIMITED GD ROAD, LAAL KUA
                                 GAZIABAD (UTTAR PRADESH)

                           3.    DIVISIONAL MANAGER NATIONAL INSURANCE
                                 COMPANY LTD. SAFARI COMPLEX, REWA ROAD
                                 SATNA M.P. (MADHYA PRADESH)

                                                                                  .....RESPONDENTS
                           NONE)

                                 This appeal coming on for admission this day, th e court passed the
                           following:
Signature Not Verified
Signed by: MOHD TABISH
KHAN
Signing time: 09-08-2023
13:15:36
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                                                               ORDER

This appeal is wrongly connected with MA. No.4929/2022, it is to be heard independently.

None for respondent No.3 though they had put in their appearance on 28.07.2022 on advance copy.

This appeal is filed being aggrieved of the award dated 13.01.2022 passed by learned 8th Additional Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Satna in MACC No.719/2017 (Sudhadevi Agrawal and Others Vs. Vijay Kumar Yadav and Others).

This appeal is filed on the ground that income of the deceased is

considered by the learned Tribunal on a much lower scale of Rs.2,500/- per month by wrongly placing reliance on the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the New India Insurance Company Vs. Smt. Kalpana and Others, AIR 2007 SC 1243, wherein in case of death of a driver Hon'ble Supreme Court had presumed notional income at Rs.3,000/- per month and had made computation of compensation.

It is submitted that the Tribunal failed to apply itself and held that since Supreme Court in an accident which took place in 2007 considered income at Rs.3,000/- per month, therefore, for the accident which took place in 2004, the Tribunal considered income at Rs.2,500/- per month.

A plain reading of the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Smt. Kalpana and Others (supra), it is mentioned in para 3 that accident had taken place on 07.06.1999. Thus, it is submitted that learned Tribunal by merely reading the placitum has passed the award without going into the details of the judgment of Smt. Kalpana and Others (supra) where date of accident was 07.06.1999.

Signature Not Verified Signed by: MOHD TABISH KHAN Signing time: 09-08-2023 13:15:36

Second ground which is raised by Shri Rajas Pohankar, learned counsel for the appellants is that claimants had produced income tax returns on the record before the Tribunal as Annexure P-16/C in which written income of the deceased was mentioned as Rs. 52,750/-. It bears acknowledgment of the income tax department dated 22.08.2003 with serial No.0102001920 but same has been discarded by the Tribunal on the ground that it does not bear signatures of the income tax department.

It is submitted that this treatment in the hands of the Tribunal is arbitrarily. When there is a seal of the income tax department and the original copy of the acknowledgment is available on record as Annexure P-16 and that return was admittedly filed prior to the date of the accident which is 02.03.2004 when there was no reason to discard that income tax return.

Accordingly, accepting the income tax return to be correct, income of the deceased can be treated to be Rs.52,000/- per annum on the date of the

accident. 1/3rd is to be deducted towards the living expenses of the deceased, leaving net dependency of the family at Rs.34,667/- per annum. Tribunal has accepted his age to be 45 years as date of birth of the deceased was 10.03.1958. Therefore, 25% is to be added towards the future prospects and then, multiplier of 14 will be applicable, taking total pecuniary compensation to Rs.6,06,672/-. Over and above which, claimants are entitled to a sum of

Rs.70,000/- thus, total compensation admissible in favour of the claimants will come out to Rs.6,77,672/- (Rupees Six Lacs Seventy Seven Thousand Six Hundred and Seventy Two Only) against a sum of Rs.4,27,000/- (Rupees Four Lacs Twenty Seven Thousand Only) awarded by learned Claims Tribunal. Thus, there will be addition to the tune of Rs.02,49,672/- (Rupees Two Lacs Fourty Nine Thousand Six Hundred and Seventy Two Only) which will be Signature Not Verified Signed by: MOHD TABISH KHAN Signing time: 09-08-2023 13:15:36

admissible in favour of the claimants. This additional amount will earn interest @ 6% from the date of filing of the claim petition till the date of the actual payment. Other terms and conditions of the award like fixation of liability etc. shall remain intact.

In above terms, this appeal is disposed of . Record of the Tribunal be sent back immediately. Certified copy as per rules.

(VIVEK AGARWAL) JUDGE Tabish

Signature Not Verified Signed by: MOHD TABISH KHAN Signing time: 09-08-2023 13:15:36