N.N.MITHAL, J. - (1.) THE claimant respondent was a passenger in the ill fated Bus No. UTA 868 belonging to the appellant Corporation which met with an accident at about 5 PM on 3-10-1977 while proceedings from Khalilabad to Basti. At the relevant time it was being driven by Lal Ji Tewari and Lal Bahadur Singh was its conductor. The Bus, according to the claimant, was being driven in rash and negligent manner as result of which it went out of control and hit against a tree at the far left and of the road resulting in serious injuries to the claimant. Against a claim for Rs. 1,25,000/-, Rs. 35,000/- have been awarded by the Tribunal. The Corporation has felt aggrieved and has come up in appeal.
(2.) ACCORDING to Sri S.K. Sharma, learned Counsel for the Corporation, the accident did not take place on account of rash and negligent driving nor compensation awarded was legally justified. From the evidence on record the Tribunal has found that the driver was tired and over-worked when he was asked to drive the Bui from Khalilabad to Basti as he had already to drive the Bus from Khalilabad to Basti as he had already driven the Bus from Gonda to Deoria, a distance of 200 Kilometers and was made to drive the Bus onwards the cause of the accident. The Tribunal also found that the vehicle had not been thoroughly checked before it was put on the road; its hand-brake was defective as admittedly the driver himself and its speedometer was also not working so as to indicate the speed at which the Bus was running. The Tribunal also found that although the driver had seen the cyclist coming from the opposite direction from a distance of atleast 50 paces he did not care to slow down the vehicle and was also negligent in not slowing it down when he entered the abadi area. Rashness and negligent driving was also evident from the fact that the Bus stopped only after one furlong from where the vehicle ass too-red to the left. It was the own case of the Corporation that it was raining that day and the road was muddy and, therefore, when the driver tried to avoid hitting a cyclist coming from opposite direction the Bus skidded and collided against a tree.
(3.) APART from the claimant two other witnesses have been examined and they have all supported the case of the claimant. There is nothing in the evidence which may prevail upon me to take a different view then what the Tribunal has taken I, therefore, do not find any just reason to reverse and modify the findings of the Tribunal which are hereby confirmed.;