- (1.) R. K. Singh, J. This is an appeal under Section 110 (d) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939. The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, Agra dismissed the claim petition of Smt. Saroj Lata Agarwal and five others claiming compensation on account of the death of name Shanker Agrawal a Government doctor. The death was caused by a motor accident on 12th of July, 1976 at about 12. 00 noon between Tundla-Hajratpur about 32 Km. away from Agra. The claim petition has been dismissed on the ground that the claimants could not prove that the death was caused by the accident due to rash and negligent driving of the Ambassador Car.
(2.) THE Motor Accident Claims Tribunal has discussed the evidence of the witnesses in the impugned award dated 28th of May, 1983. THE claims Tribunal has discussed the evidence of two eye witnesses of the occurrence, namely P. W. 2 Pyarey Lal and P. W. 3 Babu Lal. Pyarey Lal hasstated that he was going from Mundi Jahangirpur to Firozabad on cycle and when he went a bit further to Tundala he saw that one scooterist was coming on a Scooter from Biroza bad side and from Firozabad side one car come at a very high speed and knocked the scooter, as a result of which the scooterist fell down on the Kachcha flank of the road getting head injury and bleeding started from the head. THE car and the driver was stopped and the driver and occupant of car was requested to take the victim to hospital but the car driver took the plea that he after turning the vehicle will take the victim to hospital. THE inmate of the car directed the driver Subhash to take the victim to hospital but in the name of turning the vehicle the car driver fled away with the vehicle. THE witnesses has given the car number as UPU 5934 and has claimed to have identified the driver Subhash. P. W. 3 Babu Lal has also given the same picture of the occurrence. This witness claims that he was going on foot towards his village from Myodamour. He saw that one car was coming in high speed from Firozabad side and had knocked the scooterist going on the road as a result of which the scooterist with scooter feel down and the scooterist got head injury bleeding started from the head. The Ambassador car also stopped at some distance. People collected there and requested the car driver to take the victim in the car. The driver assured that he will take the victim and he started turning the vehicle but on the plea of turning the driver took away the car towards Agra side. This witness also gives the car No. UPU 5934. The Claires Tribunal says that these witnesses were not named in the first information report as witnesses of occurrence and their statement was not recorded under Section 161 Cr. P. C. by the Investigating Officer who investigated the accident criminal case. So according to the opinion of the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal these witnesses are tutored witnesses who cannot be relied upon. This reason appears unacceptable in view of the fact that the claimants were not present on the spot and they lodged the first information report later on after getting the information of the said accident. So they had no occasion to know the names of the persons who had seen the accident in question. There is no discussion in the impugned award as to how that Tribunal could reach to the conclusion that these witnesses Pyarey Lal and Babu Lal are tutored witnesses. Moreover, there is no reason why these witnesses will come against the respondents naming the Ambassador car as the relevant vehicle causing the accident involving the each of Rama Shanker Agrawal for whose death the claim petition has been presented. So the reason given by the Claims Tribunal to discard the evidence of P. Ws. Babu Lal and Pyare Lal are not accent able. These two witnesses are perfectly reliable being independent persons having no connection with either side. The evidence of Babu Lal and Pyarey Lal proves that the Ambassador Car UPU 5934 caused the accident in which Rama Shanker Agrawal received fatal head injury and succumbed to the same injury on 13th of July, 1976 in S. N. Hospital, Agra. The claim petition is fit to be allowed.
(3.) ON the quantum of compensation the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal has framed issue No. 3 and has recorded the finding that the compensation if at all, can be put to Rs. 1,50,000/ -. The evidence of claimant Smt. Saroj Lata Agarwal has established the monthly salary of the deceased Rama Shanker Agrawal who was a Government Medical Officer at Rs. 1442/. The age of the deceased has been found at 38 years. The accident took place in 1976 which is covered by the old Motor Vehicles Act but for judgming reasonableness of the amount of compensation the principle laid down in Second Schedule attached with Section 163-A of the Motor Vehicles Act which came into force in 1994 can be taken help of. The age of the victim Rama Shanker Agrawal held to be 38 years, so safely the multiplier of 16 as provided in Second Schedule can be applied for calculating the compensation. The monthly salary of the deceased has been held at Rs. 1442/- per month. After deducting one third for his personal expenses Rs. 961/- are available for the dependents of the deceased who are claimants. The annual dependency will come to (961x12) Rs. 11532/ -. After applying multiplier 16 it comes (11532 X 16) to Rs. 1,84,512/- as general damages. A sum of Rs. 2,000/- as funeral expenses and Rs. 5,000/- as loss of consortium is also to be added making it total of Rs. 1,91,512/ -. The claim petition was filed in 1976 being the claim petition No. 881 of 1976. The provisions of Section 110 CC of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 provides for interest from the date of filing of the claim petition. In the present case the claimants have suffered a lot during the pendency of the claim petition and the appeal. They are entitled to interest on the compensation amount. Accordingly 6% simple interest is allowed on the compensation amount of Rs. 1,91,512/- from the date of the application i. e. 20th November, 1976 till the date of payment. Claimant No. 1 Smt. Saroj Lata A. grawal is the widow of the deceased Rama Shanker Agrawal. Claimant No. 2, 3 and 4 namely. Rajiv Agrawal, Km. Dipti Agarwal and Pankaj Agarwal were minor children at the time of claim who must have grown adult by now. Claimant No. 5 and 6 are mother and father of the deceased Rama Shanker Agrawal. On the findings recorded above, the appeal is allowed and the claim petition of the claimants is also allowed. They are awarded a sum of Rs. 1,91,512/- a compensation plus six percent interest thereon from 29th November, 1971 till the date of payment, as compensation for the death of Dr. Rama Shanker Agrawal. The entire amount of compensation will be paid to the claimant No. 1 Smt. Saroj Lata Agarwal in her Bank account which she will use her own benefit as well as for the welfare of the claimants No. 5 and6 if alive and for the benefits of the claimants No. 2, 3 and 4 if they are still "dependent on her. Appeal allowed. .;