Rajasthan High Court
Saroj Devi vs Dharamveer on 1 July, 2022
Bench: Anoop Kumar Dhand
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN
BENCH AT JAIPUR
S.B. Civil Miscellaneous Appeal No. 4404/2011
1. Smt. Saroj Devi W/o Late Shri Radha Govind Agarwal,
R/o House No. 1998, Govind Rao Ji Ka Rasta, Chandpole
Bazar, Jaipur Raj.
2. Amar Agarwal S/o Late Shri Radha Govind Agarwal, R/o
House No. 1998, Govind Rao Ji Ka Rasta, Chandpole
Bazar, Jaipur Raj.
3. Anand Agarwal S/o Late Shri Radha Govind Agarwal, R/o
House No. 1998, Govind Rao Ji Ka Rasta, Chandpole
Bazar, Jaipur Raj.
----Appellants
Versus
1. Dharamveer S/o Shri Lekhram, R/o Village And Post
Kadarpur, Tehsil Sohana, District Gurgaon Hariyana And
At Present R/o 74, Deragaon, New Delhi Owner
2. Shahabudeen Kathat S/o Shri Bhoja Kathat, R/o Village
Kesarpura Kanakheda, Tehsil Masuda, District Ajmer Raj.
Driver
3. The Reliance General Insurance Company Ltd., 405-408,
Chauthi Manjil, Green House, Ashok Marg, Near Ahinsa
Circle, C-Scheme, Jaipur Through Regional Manager
----Respondents
For Appellant(s) : Mr. Sandeep Mathur
For Respondent(s) : Mr. Ritesh Jain for
Mr. Abhinav Jain
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ANOOP KUMAR DHAND
Judgment
01/07/2022
Instant appeal has been preferred by the claimants-
appellants against the judgment and award dated 28.04.2010
passed by the Court of Motor Accident Claims Tribunal-cum-
Additional District and Sessions Judge, Fast Track No.3, Jaipur
(2 of 5) [CMA-4404/2011]
District, Jaipur in MAC case No.209/2009 whereby an amount of
Rs.3,02,000/- has been awarded as compensation on account of
death of Radhagovind Agrawal in the road accident occurred on
03.12.2007.
Learned Tribunal after framing the issues, evaluating the
evidence on the record and after hearing counsel for the parties,
decided the claim petition of the appellants awarding
compensation to the tune of Rs.3,02,000/- under various heads in
favour fo the claimants-appellants.
Learned counsel for the appellants submits that the deceased
was the owner of Shrinath Enterprises and Shrinath Motors and
was a regular income tax payee. Counsel further submits that the
Tribunal has committed an error while assessing the income of the
deceased as Rs.84,000/- per annum only.
Learned counsel further submits that the income-tax Returns
for the assessment years of 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07 were
submitted on the record and the same were exhibited as Ex.15, 16
and 17. He further submits that the last ITR pertaining to the year
2006-07 clearly indicates that the annual income of the deceased
was Rs.2,11,580/- per annum, but without any basis, the income-
tax returns submitted by the claimants were not relied by the
Tribunal.
Learned counsel further submits that there was no reason
available with the Tribunal to consider the average income of the
deceased as Rs.84,000/- per annum, when the income-tax returns
receipts were available on the record.
Learned counsel has placed reliance on a judgment of
Coordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Smt. Mamta Devi &
Ors. Vs. Rajesh Chaudhary in SB Civil Misc. Appeal
(3 of 5) [CMA-4404/2011]
No.193/2012 decided on 19.08.2021 wherein the Tribunal did
not relied the income-tax returns submitted by the claimants of
the deceased and the Coordinate Bench of this Court assessed the
loss of income of the deceased on the basis of the income-tax
returns.
Lastly, learned counsel argued that looking to the above
facts, the impugned judgment needs suitable enhancement.
Per contra, learned counsel for the respondent-Insurance
Company submits that the Tribunal while deciding the claim
petition of the appellants has correctly taken into consideration all
the factors while calculating the award in this case on the anvil of
evidence produced before it. He further submits that the judgment
dated 28.04.2010 does not call for any interference by this Court.
However, he is not in a position to controvert the submissions
made by counsel for the appellant with respect to recomputation
of the award in the present case in the light of judgment of
Coordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Smt. Mamta Devi
(supra).
I have considered the submissions made by counsel for the
parties and gone through the judgment dated 28.04.2010 as well
as other material documents available on the record.
Admittedly, the deceased was doing the business of Shrinath
Motors and Shrinath Enterprises. It is also not in dispute that prior
to his death, the deceased submitted income-tax returns for the
assessment years 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07 and the same
were produced before the Tribunal by the appellants and the same
were also exhibited as Ex.15, 16 and 17. The last return prior to
death of the deceased is pertaining to the assessment year 2006-
07, which indicates that the annual income of the deceased was
(4 of 5) [CMA-4404/2011]
Rs.2,11,580/-. Hence, the finding recorded by the Tribunal while
deciding issue No.4 is erroneous because the Tribunal has not
taken into consideration the income-tax returns of the deceased
and without any basis, his annual income has been determined as
Rs.84000/-.
Therefore, in view of the above discussion, award of
compensation in the present case is recomputed as under:-
Annual income Rs. 2,11,580/-
Less 1/3rd towards personal Rs. 2,11,580- - Rs. 70,527/-
expenses of deceased Rs. 1,41,053/-
Rs.1,41,053/- x 5 = Rs.7,05,265/-
Add towards conventional Rs.70,000/-
heads
Total amount of Rs.7,75,265/-
compensation
Compensation awarded by Rs.3,02,000/-
the Tribunal
Less amount awarded by the Rs.7,75,265/- - Rs. 3,02,000/-
Tribunal = Rs. 4,73,265/-
Enhanced amount of Rs. 4,73,265/-
compensation
In view of the above, the appellants-claimants would be
entitled to get a further sum of Rs. 4,73,265/-. Insurance
company is directed to pay an additional amount of Rs. 4,73,265/-
within a period of two months from the date of receipt of certified
copy of this order. The enhanced amount shall carry 6% interest
from the date of filing of claim petition till the actual payment is
made.
The learned Tribunal shall disburse Rs.50,000/- in the Joint
Saving Bank Account of the claimants and the balance amount of
the enhanced compensation be invested in any Nationalised Bank
(5 of 5) [CMA-4404/2011]
for a period of three years and interest accrued on the deposit
shall be paid to the appellants-claimants on monthly basis.
Consequently, the appeal is disposed of.
All pending application(s) stand disposed of.
Record of the Tribunal be sent back forthwith.
(ANOOP KUMAR DHAND),J
HEENA GANDHI /52
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