Rajasthan High Court - Jodhpur

Mariyam @ Maryam vs Amar Singh (2025:Rj-Jd:7367) on 5 February, 2025

Author: Rekha Borana

Bench: Rekha Borana

[2025:RJ-JD:7367]

      HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT
                       JODHPUR
                    S.B. Civil Misc. Appeal No. 560/2021
1.       Mariyam @ Maryam W/o Ibrahim Khan, Aged About 52
         Years, Nayi Abadi, Banswara Hal Nabipura, P.s. Kotwali,
         Dis. Banswara
2.       Shamshir Khan S/o Ibrahim Khan, Aged About 35 Years,
         Nayi Abadi, Banswara Hal Nabipura, P.s. Kotwali, Dis.
         Banswara
3.       Nasir Khan S/o Ibrahim Khan, Aged About 32 Years, Nayi
         Abadi, Banswara Hal Nabipura, P.s. Kotwali, Dis.
         Banswara
4.       Iqbal Khan S/o Ibrahim Khan, Aged About 30 Years, Nayi
         Abadi, Banswara Hal Nabipura, P.s. Kotwali, Dis.
         Banswara
                                                                      ----Appellants
                                       Versus
1.       Amar Singh S/o Ram Swaroop, Bheragarh Khuman, P.s.
         Kolar Road, Dis. Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
2.       Dilip Buildkon Limited, Plot No. 5, Inside Govind Narayan
         Singh Gate, Chuna Bhatti, Kolar Road, Bhopal, Madhya
         Pradesh
3.       Dilip Buildon Limited, Plot No. 5, Inside Govind Narayan
         Singh Gate, Chuna Bhatti, Kolar Road, Bhopal, Madhya
         Pradesh
4.       Branch Manager, Iffco-Tokio General Insurance Company
         Limited, Branch 1-B, Ground Floor, Mehta Bhawan, Ashok
         Nagar, Main Road, Udaipur
                                                                    ----Respondents


For Appellant(s)             :     Mr. R.S. Bhati
For Respondent(s)            :     Mr. Jagdish Chandra Vyas


              HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE REKHA BORANA

                                    Judgment

05/02/2025


1.    The present misc. appeal has been preferred by the

appellants-claimants seeking enhancement of the compensation

amount awarded vide judgment/award dated 09.02.2021 passed

by Family Court, Banswara in MAC Case No. 168/2019 (Old No.

87/2015).

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      Vide impugned judgment/award dated 09.02.2021,                           the

learned Family Court awarded a sum of Rs.5,82,144/- in favour of

the claimants along with interest @9% per annum from the date

of filing of the claim petition.

2.    Brief facts as pleaded in the claim petition are that on

16.02.2015, Ibrahim Khan was en route from Banswara to Pipalwa

in his tempo bearing registration No. RJ-03-PA-1632. At around

4:00-4:15 PM, on reaching near Pragati Petrol Pump, Banswara-

Ghatol-Jaipur, a dumper bearing registration No. MP-04-HE-1333,

being driven rashly and negligently on the wrong side of the road,

collided with Ibrahim's tempo resulting into fatality of Ibrahim. FIR

No. 53/2015 pertaining to the said accident was lodged at Police

Station Kotwali, Banswara.

      The offending vehicle, on the date of accident, was insured

with respondent No.4 Insurance Company.

3.    The appellants-claimants are the dependants of deceased

Ibrahim. The learned Court after framing the issues, evaluating

the evidence available on record and after hearing the counsel for

the parties, while assessing the monthly income of the deceased

to be Rs.5,122/-, awarded total compensation of Rs.5,82,144/- in

favour of the appellants-claimants, the breakup of which is as

under:

         1.    Monthly income of the deceased                    Rs.5,122/-
         2.    Loss of Income (as per the age of Rs.5,07,144/-
               the deceased 53 years, a multiplier
               of 11, and 1/4th deductions qua
               personal expenses).
         3.    Under the head of 'Funeral Expenses' Rs.20,000/-
         4.    Under the head of 'Consortium'                    Rs.40,000/-
         5.    Under the head of 'Loss of Estate'                Rs.15,000/-

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          6.   Total   amount          awarded          by     the Rs.5,82,144/-
               Tribunal/Court


        Learned Court below also awarded interest @9% per annum

from the date of filing of the claim petition i.e. 04.03.2015.

4.      Learned counsel for the appellants raised the following

grounds:

(i)     The learned Court erroneously computed the income of the

deceased to be Rs.5,122/- per month on basis of the wages for an

unskilled labour whereas the deceased was engaged as a driver

and hence the income ought to have been considered that of a

skilled labour.

(ii)    The learned Court erred in omitting to take into consideration

the future prospects of the deceased while computing the loss of

income which is in total contravention to the principles/guidelines

as laid down in the case of National Insurance Company

Limited vs. Pranay Sethi and Ors.; (2017) 16 SCC 680.

(iii)    The learned Tribunal committed a significant error by

awarding insufficient compensation qua the conventional heads.

5.      Learned counsel for the respondents although supported the

impugned judgment to the extent of computation of income, but is

not in a position to refute the submission regarding the non

consideration of future prospects and non grant of compensation

qua conventional heads.

6.      Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the

material available on record.




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7.    A bare perusal of the material available on record reflects

that the wife of the deceased i.e. Mariyam (AW-1), in her

statements, submitted that her husband used to drive a tempo

and earned monthly income of Rs.9,000/-. True it is that no

document in support of the said statement has been placed on

record but then, the fact of the deceased being a driver has not

also been controverted by the respondents.

        In view of the same, this Court deems it proper to compute

the income of the deceased at the minimum wages as applicable

for a skilled labour. As per the Government Notification, the

minimum wages as on 01.01.2015 prescribed for a skilled labour

was Rs.217/- per day which makes the per month income to be

Rs.5,642/-.

8.    Keeping into consideration the settled position of law

regarding the addition to the deceased's future prospects, this

Court draws upon the precedent set in the case of Pranay Sethi

(supra) and holds that addition qua the future prospects of the

deceased will be at the rate of 10%, considering the age of the

deceased i.e. 53 years and nature of his employment.

9.    With regard to the amount to be awarded under the

conventional heads, the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of Pranay

Sethi    (supra)    has   fixed      the     amount         payable    under    the

conventional heads, namely, loss of estate, loss of consortium and

funeral expenses to be Rs. 15,000/-, Rs.40,000/- and Rs.15,000/-

respectively. Further, the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of

Magma General Insurance Co. Ltd. vs Nanu Ram Alias

Chuhru Ram;(2018) 18 SCC 130 interpreted 'consortium' to be

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a compendious term, which encompasses spousal consortium,

parental consortium as well as filial consortium. Therefore, this

Court is of the opinion that the amount as determined under

conventional heads shall be payable to the claimants.

10.   Consequently, the present appeal is partly allowed and the

impugned judgment/award dated 09.02.2021 passed by Family

Court, Banswara in MAC Case No. 168/2019 (Old No. 87/2015) is

modified to the extent that the appellants-claimants shall be

entitled to the following compensation:


        1.     Income per month (after addition of                 Rs.4,655/-
               future    prospects   (10%)    and
               deduction for personal and living
               expenses (1/4th) in the monthly
               income of Rs.5,642/-)
        2.     Loss of Income (as per the age of                   4,655x12x11=
               the deceased i.e. 53 years, a
                                                                   Rs.6,14,460/-
               multiplier of 11)
        3.     Under the head of 'Consortium'                      40,000 x 4 =
                                                                   Rs.1,60,000/-
        4.     Under      the      head        of     'Funeral Rs.15,000/-
               Expenses'
        5.     Under the head of 'Loss of Estate                   Rs.15,000/-
        6.     Total amount of compensation                        Rs.8,04,460/-
        7.     Amount awarded by Tribunal/Court                    Rs.5,82,144/-
        8.     Enhanced amount of compensation                      Rs.8,04,460/-
                                                                   - Rs.5,82,144/-
                                                                   -------------------

Rs.2,22,316/-

11. The enhanced amount shall carry interest @6% per annum

from the date of filing of the claim petition till the actual payment

is made. The respondent Insurance Company is directed to deposit

the award amount (if not deposited yet) and the enhanced amount

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of compensation with the Tribunal within a period of two months

from the date of receipt of the copy of this order, failing which, the

same shall carry interest @7.5% per annum from the date of this

order till actual realization. Upon deposition, the learned Tribunal

is directed to disburse the same to the claimants in terms of the

award.